


Steak and Lizards

by Keiko Kirin (sakana17)



Series: Steak [11]
Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2001-10-05
Updated: 2001-10-05
Packaged: 2017-10-03 05:38:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 28,498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sakana17/pseuds/Keiko%20Kirin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Another mine, a pool, and lizards. Content includes incarceration and unwanted sexual attention.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Steak and Lizards

**Author's Note:**

> For Abby, who likes lizards. Zillions of thanks to Merry and Kathy for beta reading and lots of help.

_The chief will wear blue, and his right page will wear red, and his left page will wear brown, and upon the dais there will be three candles burning at all times. Any man who approaches must bow before the chief, the prince, and the king_.

Daniel tapped his pencil against his lips, frowning. _Chief_ was wrong. _Lord_ seemed more appropriate in this context: _must bow before the lord, the prince, and the king_. He looked at the next photographic enlargement and turned the page of his notebook.

_There are seven greetings each man must say, as there are seven hours in the day_. Perhaps _seven times of day_ would make more sense. He erased and changed it. _The first is to greet the new night, as it swells over the moon and beyond. The second is to... is to... _

Jack was standing in front of his desk. Daniel was aware of this without looking up. He kept his pencil on the paper and glanced over the rims of his glasses. Jack stood there, hands stuffed in pockets.

"Whatcha doing?" Jack asked.

What did it look like he was doing? Daniel rubbed the tip of his tongue against his teeth and finished writing: _The second is to greet the night's three wives who rise from their beds and kneel before their husband_.

"I'm refining the translation of the wall inscriptions from P9A-327," he said, holding up the photograph and finding his place again.

Jack didn't say anything. Daniel wrote: _The third is to greet the departing night..._ He paused. Jack hadn't moved, was still standing there. It wasn't time for a briefing, they'd had that already. No way could it be time to get ready for the mission. He hadn't been here that long. Was this simply one of Jack's come-and-bug-Daniel moments?

Daniel set his pencil down, sat up straight, and looked at Jack. Jack was watching him, and he had that smile. Oh. The private little smile which barely curved Jack's lips, but somehow reached his eyes, which broadcast something very private indeed.

Daniel couldn't help himself: he thought of it as the you-gave-me-a-great-fuck smile.

A slow fever drenched his skin under his clothes, up the back of his neck, over his forehead, and down his cheeks. He stared at Jack. Jack cracked a broader smile, said, "Okay," and wandered out of the office with his hands still buried in his pockets.

Oh, great. That was just great. Now how was he supposed to finish this translation, with that smile imprinted on his vision, with his cock hard, with his palms sweating, with memories of making love to Jack racing around his mind? He stared at his notebook, not seeing the words.

Six days ago had been perfect. Making love, oh, the feel of it, of Jack holding him in every sense of the word. The feel of Jack coming, all the strength that held him released with sweet, fierce energy. Beyond anything Daniel could have expected.

Through some mutual, unspoken agreement, the next day -- the first of two whole, glorious days off -- was a lazy, hanging out day. Still recovering, at least in Daniel's case. Not physically -- physically, he was hungrier for Jack than ever -- but mentally. It wasn't just great sex. Jack had told Daniel he was 'home' and Daniel had admitted the same, and they both knew what that meant. Maybe the words were code words, but the meaning was clear, always there. And what Daniel had had to recover from was realizing the meaning had been there for a while. Much longer than he'd thought.

So, they recovered together, doing stupid, boring stuff that was inexplicably less boring and less stupid merely because they did it together. Which sounded like a soppy cliché, but it was true.

Then they went to a movie. A movie. Date central. _Good god,_ Daniel had thought, _is this Jack courting me?_ The answer: not really. Jack wanted to see the movie, Daniel was happy enough to go along. No surreptitious arm around the shoulders in the darkened theater. They didn't even share the same bag of popcorn. An incredibly dull Hollywood movie with an ending straight out of classical Greek tragedy. Jack predicted it, too, but was willing to be entertained. Daniel lost interest and mentally composed journal articles in his mind, the ones he could never write and publish because everything in them was classified information.

Dinner out, very low key, and back to Daniel's place. Kissing, making out on the couch. The couch got too small very quickly. Making out on the floor. On the floor. On the thick rug, fully clothed, laughing and unable to stop kissing. Like horny teenagers, the cliché went, but Daniel couldn't remember anything from his teen years being so comfortable, so right, so relaxed and exciting at the same time. But that was Jack: comfortable, right, relaxing, exciting.

In bed, just touching each other. Daniel loved that. Everything they did was... wow. And making love was ultra-wow. But he still loved when they just touched. Jack's hands on his skin, and Jack's skin beneath his hands. It was still a rush, an aching, wonderful rush, to feel Jack come in his hand. To watch while he stroked and squeezed and rubbed, and brought Jack to the edge, and took him over it. Always a rush.

The next day had been the last day of their time off. The bittersweet air of disappearing hours. More laziness, more making out, some less stupid, less boring stuff. Then back to bed, in the middle of the afternoon, sunlight streaming in, because they had both been hungry, needing it. And Daniel had wanted to turn the tables, so to speak. He'd admitted Jack was 'home'. How much more ready could he be? But Jack really wanted it again. Really _really_ wanted it, with an intensity of passion and lust Daniel could never have refused in a million years. And, well, it wasn't like Daniel didn't want to do it again. Uh, no.

More great sex. Wonderful, amazing love-making. And, to be perfectly frank, a terrific fuck. Jack was very... strong, stubborn, passionate, and demanding about what he wanted, and since everything he wanted blew Daniel's mind, this was not a problem. Ah, no. He gave in to those demands, let them carry him where Jack wanted him to go, and they went supernova together. Everything communicated with their bodies, their breathing, but perfectly understood. Daniel thought later, embarrassingly romantic, that they had invented a new language together. He kept this thought to himself; it was a little too sappy to share.

And after that, Daniel had been introduced to the private little smile. He'd known Jack for how many years? Seen Jack in all kinds of moods. Thought he knew every one of Jack's smiles. Wrong. Not this one. This was a new one. And it...

It had just made him waste an hour daydreaming about their two days together instead of working on the translation.

Daniel adjusted his glasses and went back to his notebook: _The third is to greet the departing night who sinks below his wives to sleep in satiated peace_.

\-----

"No, no. The fifth one. You have to start with the fifth one."

Jack drummed his fingers on his P-90 and stared at Daniel. "I did start with the fifth one," he said patiently. Secretly murdering him in his mind. Cartoon murdering, the kind that killed for only a second.

Daniel leafed back a page in his notebook. Another chevron engaged on the stargate. Next to Jack, Teal'c stood motionless, doing that Teal'c thing. On the other side of Daniel, Carter was ready to go. She gave Daniel a sidelong look. Ha. She knew Jack had said the right one. So there.

The next chevron engaged. Daniel glanced up from his notes. "Oh," he said. Very slightly apologetic.

Jack twitched an eyebrow. "'I greet the fullness of the day, who toils for us so that we may live by her bounty,'" Jack repeated. "'I bow before the lord, the prince, and the king.'"

"And then you bow three times," Daniel said.

"Check," said Jack, as another chevron lit up. He glanced at Daniel. "You're sure you don't want to go first? Test your theory firsthand?"

Daniel shut his notebook. "It's not really a theory, since I'm assuming whoever inscribed hundreds of protocols of etiquette on the wall facing their stargate found them too important to disregard. So, no, I don't think I should go first, since it clearly says the first man to approach should be the leader. It would be an insult otherwise."

Ah, Daniel pissy and pedantic. Life was good. Jack silently rehearsed the rest of the seven greetings as the stargate came to rest, the seventh chevron locked, and the wormhole wooshed out and back.

SG-1 walked up the ramp and stepped through the gate.

On the other side was a wall. It was high, black, and smooth, inscribed in neat columns. The DHD was centered in front of it, and next to the DHD was the MALP. The room the stargate was in was square, empty, and windowless. Behind the gate, opposite the inscribed wall, was an open doorway.

Teal'c walked to the doorway and checked ahead. O'Neill exchanged a look with him to ask if it was safe, then went forward, through the doorway. The rest of SG-1 followed.

They stood on a large, deep, shaded balcony. The sky beyond was a cloudy orange. The decoration was sparse: three low, round bowls with a candle burning in each. Teal'c walked to the edge of the balcony and was surprised to see how high up they were. The roofs of the buildings around this one were all very far down below. The balcony had no railing.

"Wow," said O'Neill, standing next to him and looking down.

Daniel Jackson joined them, looked over the edge, and took a couple of steps back, turning away. Major Carter checked the other end of the balcony.

"No sign of anyone, sir," she reported.

"Daniel?"

Daniel Jackson pointed to the bowls. "Here are the candles. This must be the dais. I don't know--"

He was interrupted by the sudden appearance of six men in the doorway. Teal'c had seen no sign of Goa'uld transport rings and had not heard the stargate engaging. They were not Goa'uld. Three of the men carried metallic rods Teal'c believed to be weapons. Teal'c gripped his staff.

The tallest man wore a knee-length dark blue jacket over trousers the same color. He had long white hair tied back from his face. He was flanked by two men wearing similar clothing, one in red, and one in brown. And around them were three men wearing grey and carrying weapons. They stood still, staring at SG-1.

Daniel Jackson opened his mouth to speak, but stopped. He cleared his throat and looked at O'Neill. O'Neill looked curiously at Daniel Jackson, who tilted his head in the direction of the aliens. O'Neill said, "Ah," and stepped forward.

"I greet the fullness of the day, who toils for us so that we may live by her bounty," O'Neill said. "I bow before the lord, the prince, and the king." He bowed to the tallest man three times, brief, stiff bows.

Teal'c watched the alien closely. He looked surprised and stared at O'Neill.

O'Neill hesitated for a moment, then said, "I greet the brightness of the day, who casts shadows so that we may rest in her arms. I bow before the lord, the prince, and the king." He again bowed three times.

The alien's look changed to one of angry shock. Teal'c glanced at the others and saw that they had also noticed this. Major Carter subtly changed position to put the aliens in her direct line of fire.

O'Neill said, "I greet the departing day, who sleeps among us. I bow before the lord, the prince, and the--"

"Cease this outrage!" the tallest alien shouted. He motioned with his hands, and the three men in grey came forward, aiming their weapons. Teal'c held his staff ready, but did not aim it yet.

"Wai-wait, wait, wait," Daniel Jackson said hurriedly, holding his hands out. "Please." He bowed awkwardly and stepped next to O'Neill and murmured something to him. O'Neill said slowly, "I greet the new night, as it swells over the moon and beyond. I bow before the lord, the prince, and the ki--"

The alien motioned again. The men in grey advanced, weapons aimed at O'Neill and Daniel Jackson. Teal'c raised his staff.

It was all over quickly. Light streaked from the tips of the men's metallic rods, and surrounded O'Neill and Daniel Jackson. Teal'c fired a warning shot at the floor in front of one the men. They stopped, but it was too late: O'Neill and Daniel Jackson were gone.

"Colonel?" yelled Major Carter, looking around. Teal'c called out, "Daniel Jackson!"

There was no response. The men in grey lowered their rods. Teal'c aimed his staff at them. "Where are Colonel O'Neill and Daniel Jackson?" he demanded.

The men in grey ignored him. The tall alien lifted his hands and brought them together. The men in grey pointed their weapons at the floor. Light enveloped all six men, and they disappeared.

Teal'c looked at Major Carter. She stared at him, wide-eyed. Together they searched the balcony and the room the stargate was in. There were no signs of O'Neill and Daniel Jackson. They could find no way off the dais and no way to reach other rooms. After their exhaustive search, Major Carter shook her head. "We have to go back and inform General Hammond. This is now a search and rescue situation."

"I agree," Teal'c said, casting one last look around. He pulled out his GDO and pressed the symbols for Earth on the DHD.

\-----

Busy day, very busy day. Radnor had barely had time to complete the shipping manifest before the light over the arrival pen lit up again. With a weary sigh, she filed the manifest and opened the hatch. She peered inside the pen.

Two new ones, dressed funny. They rose from the floor and looked around. One of them held a black instrument Radnor had never seen before. This one stood and shaded his eyes and called up to her, "Hey!"

"Strip," she ordered, punching her receipt code into the box next to the hatch.

The new arrival put his hands on his hips and looked indignant. "Excuse me?" he said.

She didn't have time for this. She slammed the hatch shut and sent a message to Central. Let the boys in Receiving take care of it. She had another manifest to prepare.

The files for the new arrivals were waiting for her in her office. She glanced at them, coded them with her identity key, and sent notification to Processing and Assignments. She was halfway through the next manifest when Norwin from Receiving sauntered up to her desk.

"They're ready. Where to?"

Radnor flicked him a irritated glance. "Assignment hasn't come through yet." She looked past him. "You didn't leave them outside, did you?"

Norwin smiled. "Relax. They're not going anywhere. They have no idea where they are. Couple of slow ones." He made a rude gesture to indicate mental deficiency.

Radnor frowned at him. "They can wait in here."

Norwin shrugged, disappeared into the corridor, and returned, ushering them inside. They wore odd, mismatched clothes: green trousers and black shirts. One of them had round, clear coverings in front of his eyes. They pulled away from Norwin's grasp and stood at Radnor's desk.

The one who had spoken to Radnor earlier asked, "Would you mind telling us what's going on?"

Radnor ignored him. "Where's their gear?" she asked Norwin.

"Benmar said she'd never seen anything like it before. Said it'd take her longer to inventory it. She'll send the file up as soon as she can."

Radnor sighed. Another delay she didn't need. Norwin perched on the edge of her desk. "Medical files should be done, though."

Radnor called up her in-box and found the files. "You can go now, Norwin. I'll take it from here."

Norwin smiled at her and glanced at the newcomers. "Are you sure? I could wait around, in case they give you trouble."

Radnor gave him her best insincere smile. "I thought you said they were too stupid to be trouble."

"Hey," one of them said.

Norwin shrugged, slid off her desk, and wandered back to the corridor. Radnor resumed working on the manifest.

"Excuse me." The one with eye-coverings spoke. Radnor glanced at him briefly.

"I'm Danyeljaksun. This is Kernuloneel. There's been some mistake. We're explorers. Peaceful explorers. And we were talking to your lord when something happened and we ended up in here. Perhaps you can explain...?"

Radnor double-checked the data entry on the manifest form.

The more restless one waved his hand in front of Radnor's face to get her attention. She looked up at them both. They seemed reasonably fit. Probably too slow for Communications. Transportation, perhaps? Hard to second-guess Assignments.

"Look," the restless one -- Kernul-something -- said. "There's been a mistake. Let us go, and we'll leave, and never come back. We promise." He gave her a sincere look. They all did that. As if she could change things for them. Radnor went back to the manifest form.

"At least tell us where we are," the other one said with a note of urgency in his voice. Radnor glanced at them again. They were genuinely confused. Maybe they were too stupid for Transportation, too.

"You really don't know?" she asked.

"No," this one said.

Radnor brought up the file. She pointed to the history data. "This is your criminal record. You're both guilty of treason. You have been found fit and will be sentenced to an assignment instead of put to death."

"Treason?" Kernul-something said. "What treason? We didn't do anything!"

Two files appeared in Radnor's in-box. Assignments had found them too slow for Communications and Transportation. She initialed the files and sent a dispatch to Security and Control.

"Your assignments have been processed." She nodded at the four guards who appeared in her doorway. "Security and Control will escort you to your assignment." She stamped her identity key on the Prisoner Transit Form and handed it back to the guard in charge.

Surprisingly, they tried to put up a fight. Only the really hopeless cases ever did that. The guards easily subdued them with light rods. Radnor shrugged, went back to her manifest, and promptly forgot all about them.

\-----

Someone was talking.

"New ones?"

"Yeah."

"Political?"

"Could be."

"How long have they been asleep?"

"Since they got here. Heard they spent the whole trip dreaming. Not used to the light rods."

"I bet they're political. Never seen clothes like that before. Anything on them?"

"Just these. Receiving stripped them down pretty good."

"What are these?"

"I don't know. That one had them over his eyes."

"Huh. Could be worth something."

The voices -- two men -- filtered down into Daniel's consciousness. He opened one eye, squinting, and saw darkness. He tried again, opening both eyes, and saw two shadows a few yards away. He was inside... something. It was too dark and blurred to tell what, exactly. He moved his fingers over the floor and felt cold, rough, uneven rock. He ran his hand back, behind him, and felt the wall. Same as the floor. Sliding his hand forward, he felt something else: flesh.

He turned his head, wincing as a deep ache flared in the back of his skull. Jack was slumped next to him. Daniel's hand had found Jack's arm. He carefully slid his fingers over Jack's wrist and held it. Skin warm, pulse beating. Daniel relaxed a little and looked around again.

They were in a cave. The two men who had been speaking moved further away. There was an unnatural, greenish light coming from that direction. It was chilly, and the air was still and stale.

All of their gear was gone: packs, caps, weapons, knives, jackets. Daniel was glad he'd worn his long-sleeved shirt, although it wasn't doing much to keep out the chill. Jack, in short sleeves, felt surprisingly warm.

"Jack," he said quietly, leaning closer and keeping the two men ahead in sight.

Jack startled and sat up. Daniel held his wrist. "What?" Jack said. "Unh, _ow_. Where are we?"

"I'm not sure. There are two men up there. One of them took my glasses. That's all I've figured out."

Jack pulled his wrist free. In the faint green glow, Daniel saw him bend over and hold his head.

"We were in that office," Jack said, voice muffled. He rubbed his head. "After they took all our stuff."

The ache in Daniel's head faded a little, and he remembered. "Yes. There was a woman. She said we'd committed treason."

Jack pressed his forehead against the base of his palm. "Then those guys came in with weapons."

"Light rods," said Daniel.

"What?"

"That's what one of the men called them. Light rods. Said we weren't used to them."

"No kidding." Jack rubbed his temples and sat up. "So. I'm guessing this is this planet's version of jail." The green light made him look older, more severe, as he frowned and looked around. "Does this remind you of anything?"

"Hadante," Daniel said. "The Taldor had instant transportation technology. But they also gave us a trial. Of sorts."

Jack gave him a sidelong look. "You call that a trial?"

Daniel cocked his head. "More than we got this time."

Jack rubbed his head again and started to stand up. A blindingly bright light flashed at them, and Jack crouched down, shading his eyes. Daniel squinted at the two dark figures coming toward them.

"Awake?" said one.

He reached down and grabbed Daniel's arm, yanking him to his feet. "Come with me."

Daniel pulled his arm free and glared at the man over the intense light. Jack stood up and they followed the strangers out of the dead-end tunnel and into a huge cavern lit with tubular green lanterns set into the ceiling, high above. It was a mine. A hundred or more men worked, swinging pick-axes at the walls, shovelling rock, dragging and hauling barrels away. The din of voices and metal striking rock clamored around them, and the air was hot and thick and pungent.

A man approached them. Slightly shorter than Daniel, dark-haired, stocky, with muscular arms and thick hands. He wiped his face with a filthy rag and stuffed it back into the waist of his pants, which were grimy and ragged below the knee. His sleeveless shirt was loose, and noticably less grimy. He glanced briefly at Daniel with small, dark, almond-shaped eyes, gave Jack a longer look, then turned to their escorts and nodded once. The two men with the bright lights wandered off.

The newcomer rested his hands on his hips. "I'm Macklin," he said. He smiled quickly, a flash of white teeth. "Welcome to paradise." He waved a hand at the cavern around them.

"Paradise?" Jack said.

Macklin grinned. "When the only other choice is death, this place is a paradise."

Jack gave Daniel a sidelong look, then glanced around again. He watched a fat, balding man swing a pick-axe against a boulder, breaking it into four pieces.

"I'm Daniel. This is Jack."

Jack focused on Macklin. "I take it you're in charge here?"

"Oh, no. The two men who just left you are. I'm just a prisoner here, like you." He stared steadily at Jack and smirked.

Jack stared back and smiled a little. "Like I said, you're in charge?"

Macklin shrugged. "Well, let's just say the ones in charge like to keep their distance. Someone has to take care of the day-to-day operation." He grinned at them again. "So let me show you around, where you'll be working, where you'll sleep." He turned, waited for them to move ahead, and walked at Jack's side. "Get you some axes and a barrel. You'll need those."

He took them through the cavern, and another like it, less crowded, and into a third, which was dimly lit with white lights and almost empty. Plain metal cots were set up in neat, long rows. Macklin led them to a row along the wall, down about half-way, and stopped.

"Here we are. These two are empty. Those are your numbers." He pointed to some squiggles painted on the metal. "Remember them. When everyone's in here for the sleep-shift, it's easy to get lost."

Jack glanced at Daniel, who was staring at the squiggles, memorizing them. Macklin motioned for them to move along. He explained about the shifts -- everyone here was on a cycle of two work-shifts, then a sleep-shift. One meal a day, between work-shifts. Shithouse was connected to the less crowded mining cavern. No showers or baths. Once a week a sprinkler system came on and poured water over the miners during a work-shift.

And then there was the stuff Macklin wasn't saying. Not yet. The casual mention of extra food, extra clothes, extra sleep, information. Something only Macklin could provide, if you could pay... Their boots, maybe. Jack had noticed most of the miners were barefoot.

Macklin took them back to the less crowded cavern and stopped next to a empty area by the wall. "Since you're new, we'll start you off here. It's an easy job. Just pick at the rock until you see something gleam. The green light picks it up, makes it shiny. Then you pick that out and put it in one of the barrels. The waste rock you just leave in piles. The scrapers will take care of it."

"Scrapers?" Daniel asked.

Macklin gave Daniel an amused look. "Let's just say scraping isn't an easy job around here. So you don't want to cause trouble, if you understand. Because anyone can be reassigned."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess who's in charge of reassignments."

Macklin smiled at him and tilted his head slightly. "Portmin will bring you the tools. We're about halfway through first shift, so you're lucky. There'll be food soon. Since you don't know any of the scrapers yet, I'll make sure you get some. Find yourself a scraper during second shift. Portmin will know someone."

He left them there and walked across the cavern to talk to someone Jack assumed was Portmin. Jack sucked on a tooth and looked up at the ceiling. Fifty, maybe sixty feet high. He touched the wall. Solid, rough rock. Cool to the touch.

"Jack," Daniel murmured. "How do we get out of here?"

Jack looked at him. Daniel's brow was furrowed and he was tapping his fingers against his leg. "I'm working on it," Jack said.

Macklin came back. "You're all set. I'll see you at meal-time. Oh, and I might as well say, if you're thinking of using the axe for anything other than the rock, it'll do you no good. There are no guards here. No way to escape."

Jack admired the guy's smugness, in spite of himself. Daniel, however, didn't. Daniel gave him that cold, superior smile and asked, "But what about you? Hasn't anyone ever tried to take your place?"

Macklin gave Jack a brief, bemused look, as if commiserating with Jack for being stuck with this guy. He pulled the rag out of his waistband and wiped his fingers with it.

"Yes. Men have tried." He smiled a little, to himself, and Jack reappraised him yet again.

"What happens if we don't work?" he asked.

Macklin looked unconcerned. Seemed to know Jack was asking out of curiosity, not from a specific personal interest.

"If you don't mine, you become a scraper," he said. "Scrapers who don't work are reported. The light rods have a lethal setting." He spread the fingers of one hand. "I hear you become little particles, like dust. Get scraped up with the rest of the dirt."

He walked off, stuffing his rag back into his pants. Jack noticed he didn't head back to the busy mine, but to the sleeping cavern. Yeah, that figured. Jack sat down and leaned against the rock. Daniel frowned down at him.

"Jack?"

"Might as well enjoy the break while we can," Jack said, closing his eyes.

\-----

Hammond stood at the bottom of the ramp and watched the members of SG-3 stride through the stargate, followed by Teal'c and Major Carter. The severe frown on Teal'c's face, and Major Carter's weary, unhappy look gave him the quick answer, but he asked Major Griff to report anyway.

"Didn't even see anyone, sir," Griff said. "We waited for four hours, but no one came."

"All right, Major. We'll debrief in one hour."

SG-3 headed out of the gateroom. Hammond was not at all surprised when Teal'c and Major Carter stayed behind.

"General Hammond," said Teal'c. "I would like to study the notes Daniel Jackson prepared for this mission. It was my observation that the ceremonial greeting O'Neill made to the ruler caused great anger."

"That may explain why Colonel O'Neill was taken," Major Carter said. "But why was Daniel taken?"

"Indeed," Teal'c said.

Hammond nodded. "You have my permission to go through Dr. Jackson's files. Anything that would help us understand what happened on that planet."

Teal'c bowed his head.

"General," said Major Carter. "I did some calculations, and the platform on the planet is about seven hundred feet high. It might be possible to secure a rope to the stargate and hang it over the side, and climb down to the surface. From there, we should be able to find a way inside the building."

"I'll keep that in mind, Major," Hammond said.

"Yes, sir," Carter said with a short, respectful nod.

She and Teal'c left the gateroom, and Hammond followed them out, going back upstairs to his office. He hoped Teal'c would find something in Dr. Jackson's notes, because sending his people back there to scale down a sheer drop to land on an alien planet where two of SG-1 had already been kidnapped was not a solution he was comfortable with. Yet.

\-----

Mining. What was it with these planets and mining, Daniel wondered. The universe was populated with planets whose natural resources required mining. Maybe it was a biological or cultural imperative in humans to mine, to dig into a planet, scar it, leave a mark...

"Daniel. A hand here?"

Daniel blinked and lifted his pick-axe again, swinging it into the rock next to Jack's. They hadn't quite found a rhythm yet, not like the other groups of men around them. For one thing, they lacked sufficient motivation. Macklin had told them to work, not to work hard. For another, it was tedious, gruelling work. The rock was solid and didn't gave way easily. And so far, no luck finding whatever it was they were mining for.

The tip of Jack's axe struck into the rock and dislodged a sizeable chunk which fell to the floor. Daniel gave it a sharp whack with his axe and it split into pieces. A thin vein of green glittered in two of them.

"I found some," he said with an odd sense of excitement. He knelt down and tapped at one piece with his axe, clearing the rock from the green. If he had his own tools and brushes, he could get it free, unmarred, in no time, he thought. Then paused and shook his head at himself. Old habits died hard.

Excitement gone, replaced by dull satisfaction, he kept working at it while Jack crouched down and cleared the other piece. They were nearly done when a horrible, loud, metallic screeching filled the cavern. Everyone stopped working. Not soon enough, the screeching stopped. The other miners all sat down on the floor.

Jack set down his axe and rubbed his hands over his head, ruffling his hair. Daniel leaned back heavily against the rock wall. This was _half_ a shift?

Macklin appeared shortly, striding toward them with another man. They both carried metal boxes. Macklin joined them and sat down with his box. The other man set a box next to Jack, and one next to Daniel, and left.

Macklin opened his box and was poking around at the contents. "It can be exhausting at first," he said. "Don't give up your meal for sleep, though. If I weren't here right now, someone would have taken it already."

Jack picked up his box and opened it, and Daniel did the same, though he really wanted to sleep and didn't feel hungry, despite everything. He couldn't remember the last meal he'd had. He peered inside, expecting grey gunk like they served on Hadante, but instead found a bowl of what looked like mixed berries, miniature crackers, and grains (alien muesli?) and a large, flat round of bread. From its texture and consistency, unleavened, he guessed, tasting it. There was also a square cup of water. They'd already noticed the water-bearers roaming around during the work-shift. Another scraper duty.

The muesli stuff wasn't bad. The 'blueberries' turned out to be hard and salty, though, and the 'oatmeal' was slightly gingery. After taking a taste, Daniel was instantly starving, and dug in. Jack was more cautious, inspecting everything before tasting it.

Macklin watched them while they ate. More accurately, he watched Jack while they ate. He seldom glanced in Daniel's direction, and usually only when Jack looked at Daniel first. Daniel wasn't sure how to read this. A good part of it was leader recognizing leader, but there was something else. Macklin was sizing Jack up. And not sizing Daniel up. Daniel frowned a little. No, wait, that was silly. This could work to their advantage, if Macklin dismissed Daniel so easily.

Jack saved his bread for last. He broke it in two and took a bite. "So, tell me about the guys in charge," he said.

Something flashed in Macklin's eyes. Respect, admiration, something like that. Daniel glanced at Jack to see if he'd caught it, but Jack wasn't looking at Macklin, he was concentrating on his bread.

"Bureaucrats from Central," Macklin said. "They stay away as much as they can. Usually just escort the shipments. Or the new prisoners."

"How far are we from the capital?" Daniel asked.

Macklin stared at him and burst into laughter. "Where are you two from, anyway? The capital's back on Senira."

A chill emptiness gripped Daniel's stomach. Jack stopped picking at his bread and exchanged a look with him.

"Senira's the planet?" Daniel asked slowly.

Macklin frowned at both of them. "Yes. Where _are_ you two from?"

"We're--"

Jack cut him off. "If we're not on Senira, where are we?"

"Fazkal." At their blank looks, Macklin clarified, "A moon."

Daniel almost retched. The pit in his stomach heaved, and he broke out in a cold sweat, but he sat back, took a deep breath, and let it pass. He took a drink of water and watched Jack. Jack gave him a calm look, serious, showing only the smallest hint of surprise. So small Macklin might have missed it.

A young man -- little more than a boy, actually -- came by, pushing a huge, round, metal cart. He gathered up their metal boxes and tossed them into the cart with a loud clang, then went on. Daniel watched him, wondering how old he was and what he'd done to deserve this. That led him back to: what had he and Jack done to deserve this? What treason? He went over their meeting with the lord again and again in his mind, and still couldn't find the answer.

"Next work-shift will be starting soon," said Macklin. "Be sure you talk to Portmin about finding a scraper."

He sat back and rested his hands on his thighs, but he didn't get up. He kept his eyes on Jack, as if expecting something. Jack was, oddly, picking at his fingernails. Daniel frowned a little, wishing Macklin would leave so they could talk and figure out what they were going to do.

After an awkward silence, Macklin stood up. Jack said, "I guess you're the one to come see if we need anything."

Jack was still looking at his fingernails. He couldn't see Macklin's smug, triumphant smile, although Daniel had a feeling Jack didn't need to see it.

"I'm the one," Macklin said. "I'm easy to find." Still smiling, he walked off.

The same horrendous metallic screeching that had begun the break ended it. Men slowly stood up, some of them stretching, others immediately taking up their axes and getting to work. The noise of the axes on rock again filled the cavern.

Jack stood up and picked up his axe and the bit of ore he'd been working on. It was clean enough, he decided, and tossed it into the barrel. Daniel rose more slowly, working a kink out of his shoulder.

Jack swung at the rock. After a moment's hesitation, Daniel swung, too. They worked at the rock for a while and Jack waited for Daniel to say something.

Daniel said, "So, ummm, Jack. I think Macklin is, uh, interested in you."

Jack rammed the sharp end of the pick into the rock, digging out more. "Yeah."

Daniel looked at him and blinked. Jack shrugged. "It happens," he said.

Daniel lifted his eyebrows and went back to digging. "This isn't going to be one of those prison exploitation things, is it?"

"Macklin's a businessman." Jack hammered the axe at the rock. "Little weasel wants to barter, wants something from me. And we need something from him."

"What?"

"Information. It's the only way out of here that I can see."

Daniel stopped in mid-swing. "Found some," he said, scraping waste rock away from a streak of green. "Do I want to know what you're willing to barter?"

He shot Jack an arch look. Jack lifted his eyebrows and half-smiled back. "Depends on what he wants."

They worked on, finding two more tiny veins of green ore. When the water-bearer came around, they used the break to find Portmin, a tubby, nervous type. He already had a scraper for them. The fact that Macklin had taken them under his wing had made Portmin eager to please. Jack asked him a few questions, but it was clear he didn't know much.

The scraper was a tall, thin, balding man with a grim, lifeless face. Portmin didn't know his name, and the guy wouldn't tell them. He said to call him 'Scraper.' He had the look of a man ready for death. Jack considered going back to Portmin to ask for someone else, but the scraper surprised him by bringing them water on his own initiative, then getting to work on clearing the waste rubble.

The work was endless, hard, and backbreaking. When the metal screech sounded, it was all Jack could do not to slump to the floor and fall asleep there. The scraper disappeared, and Daniel found their cots. The bunkroom was a mass of stinking, hot, exhausted men. Most collapsed on their cots, but others milled around, talking, joking, brawling.

Jack stretched out on the hard metal surface and winced. He rolled his shoulders and straightened his spine, but the dull ache just got worse. The hell with it. He was too tired to care. He glanced over at Daniel, curled up on the cot next to his, already asleep. Filthy and haggard, and damn, but Jack wanted to slide into that cot and curl up with him, have that comfort at least. But no, that was a long way off. First they had to get out of here. Bust out of prison, get back to the planet and the stargate, and back to Earth.

He closed his eyes, expecting an instant zonk-out. Didn't happen. He heard snores, he heard talking, he heard grunts and sex. He opened one eye and checked to see if anyone was coming by to check out the new blood, but everyone left them alone. He had Macklin to thank for that, no doubt. Yeah, well, he'd have to cross that bridge when he came to it.

When he finally fell asleep, he slept deeply, and when he woke up, the cavern was quiet and dim.

"Jack?" Daniel whispered.

Jack shifted onto his side and looked at him. "Yeah?"

Daniel shook his head a little and just stared at him. Dark, puffy rings under his eyes, smears of dust and dirt across his face. But the set of his jaw and the clarity in his eyes was all stubbornness. Faith in their escape.

Jack sat up and swung his legs over the edge of the cot. He leaned across and touched Daniel's shoulder briefly. Daniel started to say something, but looked past Jack and shut his mouth.

Jack didn't need to turn around. _Ah, here we go_.

Macklin's voice at his ear: "We have a while before the next work-shift starts. Let's have a talk."

Jack glanced back at him. He was wearing the same ragged pants, but no shirt. His chest was solidly muscled and hairy. _Am I supposed to be impressed?_ Jack thought, slightly amused.

"Yeah, all right." He stood up. Daniel sat up.

"Not him," Macklin said. "Just us."

Jack looked over at Daniel, who was giving Macklin one of those icy glares that by rights should have struck Macklin dead at ten paces. Daniel's eyes moved to Jack, he switched the glare off, and tilted his head a little. Jack twitched one eyebrow and nodded briefly once. Daniel lay back on the cot.

Jack followed Macklin. He slid his hands in his pockets and glanced over the sleeping miners as they walked through rows of cots. A hodgepodge of musclemen and ordinary guys. They reached the far corner of the cavern, and Jack wasn't particularly surprised to see that a makeshift private room had been fashioned from metal cots.

He followed Macklin inside. The room was cramped with metal boxes stacked around. A cot was set up along one wall. There was bedding made out of old clothes on it. Metal boxes formed a table next to the cot, and on this was one of the white lights like the ones set into the ceiling of the bunkroom. Macklin had covered it with a rag of orange cloth and it filled the room with a bright, warm light.

Macklin sat down on the cot. Jack stood next to the doorless entrance. "Nice digs," he commented.

"It's home." Macklin smiled. "Want some water?"

"No, thanks." Jack looked around again, pretending to admire the stockpile of whatever was in the boxes.

"You and the other one, you're not from Senira, are you?"

Jack looked at him. "What makes you say that?"

"Instinct." Macklin slumped back, leaning against the wall and folding his hands over his stomach. He regarded Jack steadily. "I'm going to guess -- and correct me if I'm wrong -- that you'd like to escape."

Jack raised his eyebrows. "I thought you said there was no escape."

Macklin spread his hands and clasped them again. "I lied. There are two ways to escape. One where I help you, and you get back to Senira alive. And the other where I don't help you."

"What happens with that one?"

Macklin looked down at his hands and said mildly, "You leave this place permanently, that's about all." Macklin gazed at him again.

"I see." Jack rocked once on his heels. "I'm guessing -- and correct me if I'm wrong -- that you want some sort of payment in exchange for helping us escape."

Macklin shrugged. "A simple barter."

Jack stared into his eyes. "I need to know the price before I enter into any deals."

Macklin smiled. "Your freedom is only worth so much?"

"Hey, maybe I like mining."

Macklin moved his thumbs, rubbing them together. He looked Jack over slowly, from head to toe and back again.

Looking around the room, Jack said, "Of course, the thought occurs to me that if, for instance, someone stopped working long enough to be up for death, that would bring the guys in charge back. And maybe that someone would tell them that you're helping prisoners escape, and maybe the guys in charge wouldn't like that."

"Yes, that's a clever thought. The only flaw to it is that it assumes the ones in charge would care about it at all."

"Wrong assumption?" Jack looked at Macklin.

Macklin smiled and shrugged. "Let's just say, you're not the first to have had that thought. I'm still here."

Okay, yeah. It had been a shot in the dark. Jack rocked on his heels again. "Well, this has been a nice chat and all, but..."

Macklin cocked his head. "Still need to know the price?"

"Still need to."

Macklin rubbed his thumbs again. "Are you a virgin? Then, for a start, I'd need to fuck you."

Jack raised his eyebrows, pursed his lips, and pretended to think this over. "For a start, you say."

Macklin tapped his thumbs together. "Fucking's nice, but there's more to life."

Jack didn't reply, still waiting to find out what the 'more' was, although he was beginning to have his suspicions.

Macklin watched him. "I like pain," he said. "I like to give it until men beg me to stop. I like to give it after they've begged me to stop, to see how long it takes to break them completely. After they're broken, I want them to beg me for more."

Jack smiled at him. "You want me to beg you to hurt me?"

Macklin smiled back. "Eventually, yes."

"What if I don't?"

Macklin chuckled. "So much the better. I would hope that time wouldn't be reached very soon." His eyes swept over Jack's body again. "A man in pain is a beautiful thing. I'd like to savor your beauty before you break."

_Yeah, whatever, you lunatic_. Jack took another look at the stains on Macklin's bedding. Blood stains. Inside his pockets, Jack drummed his fingers. "And for all that, you'll help us escape?"

"This price is just for you," Macklin replied. "Not the other one."

"Ah, well, that's a problem, see, because I'm not going anywhere without him."

Macklin flashed him a grin. "Oh, like that, is it?"

"Like that," Jack said, not smiling.

Macklin shrugged a little. "That changes the price." Macklin paused and gave Jack a lingering, assessing look. "I could break him for you. Make him ready to beg. He looks stubborn, that one. It would be beautiful to break him, but it would take a while. If you're in a hurry to escape..."

Jack felt a thick wave of revulsion rise in his gut, an acidic bile.

"I'll need to think about it," he said. "Let you know."

Macklin smiled at him. The screeching to begin the work-shift started. Over it, Macklin yelled, "Any time."

Jack left and strolled back to their cots, wincing at the noise. Daniel was sitting there, waiting for him. He got up as Jack approached, and they followed the other miners out of the bunkroom. Their scraper was waiting for them by their pick-axes. He gave them some water, then left them to work elsewhere. They picked up their axes and started on the rock again.

"He wants to fuck me," Jack said casually.

Daniel scraped away some waste rock from a new green vein and glanced at Jack. Whatever else Macklin had asked for, Jack had decided not to tell him. Daniel thought about it for a moment and decided maybe it was better he didn't know.

"What did you tell him?" he asked.

"I said I'd let him know."

Daniel picked at the vein, exposing as much of it as he could. "Do you think he'd honor his part of the bargain?"

"No," Jack said flatly. Daniel's curiosity about the rest of Macklin's price flared, and he almost asked, but was stopped by Jack's grim, serious look as he hacked at the rock.

They worked in silence for a long time. The scraper came back with more water at some point, cleaned up waste rock and pushed the barrel away. Daniel found a rhythm for his back and shoulders, banging away at the rock, wishing it was Macklin on the other side of his axe.

"How dangerous do you think he is?" Daniel asked.

"More than I thought he was," Jack said, and he sounded annoyed at himself. "I think he has one of those light-rod weapons. I didn't see it, he didn't mention it, but I have a feeling about it."

Jack found another vein of green ore. They worked together at scraping it out.

"If he does, why wouldn't he use it against the guards when they come here?"

Jack glanced at him. "Because here, he gets what he wants."

Daniel looked around. Men? No. _Desperate_ men. He had an inkling of what Jack wasn't telling him. He looked at Jack again, watched Jack pick determinedly at the ore. He went back to work, thinking in circles about Jack and Macklin and escape.

The scraper showed up again with water. Daniel realized hours must have gone by. He wondered how much longer until the meal break. He gulped down the cold water, and noticed Jack hadn't drunk his. He was staring down into the cup, frowning.

Daniel handed his empty cup back to the scraper. "Jack?"

Jack looked up, not at him, at the scraper. "Where does this come from?"

The scraper stared at him, silent. Jack tapped his cup. "The water. Where do you get it? Show me."

The scraper looked from Jack to Daniel, and Daniel caught a hint of... something... in his eyes. A sort of uncertain sadness. Then the scraper nodded, and walked off.

They followed him from this cavern into the busy one, back toward the tunnel where they had arrived, and into another tunnel. Other scrapers were here, with boxes of metal cups to be filled. They pushed through them. At the end of the tunnel was a large metal sink. Its sides were metal, but it appeared to be attached to the back wall. A curved pipe came out of the rock. A scraper placed his box of cups into the sink and touched a hand to its front edge. Water poured from the pipe.

The scraper took his full cups away and Jack walked up to the sink. "What do you think?" he asked Daniel.

Daniel looked around at the scrapers. Some looked afraid, some looked irritated, most looked puzzled. Their scraper just stared at them curiously.

"I think whatever we do, we do it now, before Macklin gets here."

Jack nodded and swung his pick-axe at the side of the sink. Daniel swung at the top. Some of the scrapers cried out and cowered, others ran off. Heart racing, Daniel crashed another blow down as Jack hacked at the front. The metal bent and folded. Two more blows and the sink fell apart.

Daniel's heart sank. A pipe came out of the rock floor and into the wall. It was maybe a few inches in diameter. Undeterred, Jack swung at the pipe. It burst and sprayed water out into the tunnel.

The water spray exposed more metal beneath what Daniel had taken for a solid rock floor around the pipe. He and Jack hammered away at it, and suddenly the floor crumbled. They stepped back as the metal beneath it fell away, and the rock with it.

It was a well, and they couldn't see the bottom. A pipe ran up along one side, broken away at the top. A round metal container -- a pumping device, Daniel guessed -- was hanging precariously from the pipe. Jack kicked it and it fell into the blackness. Daniel listened for a splash, but couldn't hear anything over the water spray and babbling of the scrapers.

Jack looked at him. Daniel looked at the hole in the floor. "Maybe," he said. "Although we don't know where it goes."

Jack nodded, then glanced back down the tunnel. It was crowded with people now, not just scrapers. Macklin had to be on his way. Jack pointed at the hole with his pick-axe. "Okay, Daniel."

Daniel handed his axe to their scraper, sat down on the floor, slid his legs in, and hesitated.

"Daniel," Jack said impatiently.

Daniel nodded and lowered his legs more. His feet dangled in nothingness below. Okay, all or nothing. How bad could it be? He shut his eyes and pushed himself away from the floor, and fell.

Not very far. His shoulders caught against the sides of the well. He opened his eyes, and the pipe was in front of him.

From above, Jack said, "Hurry up. Keep going."

Daniel kicked and struggled, and twisted his shoulders as much as he could. The rock ripped through his sleeves and scraped his skin. He twisted again, and again, and strained, waiting to hear his bones cracking. Blood seeped out from the scrapes and slicked his skin. He gritted his teeth and struggled again, and he was free, falling, banging against the rock walls. Still falling, into nothingness. Panic seized him for a split second, then he hit the ground.

It wasn't ground. It was water. So cold, solid, like ice. He struggled. No, not solid. It was water, very deep. He kicked his way to the surface. Gulping air, he treaded water. He could see nothing.

Something splashed into the water nearby. Too small to be Jack. Where was Jack? He swam toward it, just in case, and his arm hit a chunk of rock. Another splashed down. His eyes adjusted to the dark, and he looked up. Green light came down from the well. He swam under it, looking up, watching for Jack.

Every second dragged by. The scrapes on his shoulders and arms were stinging now, scalded by the icy water. Where was Jack? He couldn't see anything -- just a shaft of green light. He couldn't hear anything -- just the silence of the cavern around him, and the water. _Jack, please. Jump_.

The light in the well flashed, a horrible streak of white. Oh, god. He knew what that was. His heart pounded and his stomach knotted, and he swallowed hard. Oh, please, no.

A silhouette blocked the light. Daniel blinked to focus on it, and it was gone. Something splashed into the water next to him, a heavy, deep splash.

Daniel followed it, diving down. Blind in the water, he groped and kicked around, circling. It had to be Jack. He had to be here. His fingers touched fabric, but when he grabbed at it, it was gone. He furiously propelled himself toward it, reaching out.

His lungs burned. He swam up to the surface and caught his breath. And realized, he hadn't felt anything else _moving_ in the water. No kicking, no swimming. Oh, god, no.

He dove down, arms in front, reaching, reaching...

Something hit him in the side. A weight that bumped him. He twisted his body around to capture it. A body. Grabbing under the arms, he held it and kicked to push himself up. The weight pulled at him, and he kicked again, harder. Where was the surface, dammit? His lungs ached, and his whole body was knotted, and maybe it would be better to be pulled under, and die with Jack, drown, if Jack were already dead...

He broke the surface and gasped out. Something small hit his head. Something else. Rocks. Pebbles. Coming from above. He hauled the body up, held on with one arm, and started swimming, dragging it.

This was impossible. There was nowhere to go. He couldn't see anything. It was just water, and the body wasn't moving, wasn't swimming. Already dead, and was it even Jack?

He swam blindly, no sense of direction, just away from the well. The pain from the cold and the strain ripped through him, but all he thought about was the body. All he cared about was the body.

When he hit the wall, his first thought was relief. The cavern wasn't endless. Another rush of pain raced through him. The water dulled it. He braced his back against the wall, catching his breath, and hauled the body up in his arms, its back against his chest.

He pressed his face to the neck, and oh, god. It was Jack. He could tell. He knew that neck. But just to make sure, he lifted one hand and felt the face, touched brow and nose and lips. Definitely Jack. He tried to feel for a pulse, but his fingers were too numb from the cold. He blew on them to warm them, tried again, blew on them again, and Jack moved.

He pressed his fingers to Jack's neck. Oh, god. A pulse. Okay. He patted Jack's face.

"Jack. Jack, wake up. Wake up."

Jack moved, but sluggishly. Daniel hugged him with one arm to keep him from floating away, and kept patting his cheek.

"Jack," he said loudly into Jack's ear. His voice sounded ridiculously small in the cavern. He sighed and rested his head against Jack's. What could he do? This was impossible.

Maybe there was a ledge somewhere. It was a small hope, and Daniel couldn't believe this was the best plan he could think of, but he was exhausted.

"Okay, Jack, I'm going to try to find us a ledge. It would really help me if you woke up now and swam on your own." Jack didn't move.

Daniel gripped Jack tightly with one arm and pushed off from the wall, swimming on his back so Jack's head was above the water. He trailed his other hand along the wall, trying to feel for a ledge. Like he could find one without being able to see.

While he searched, he noticed more splashing sounds in the water. Small sounds. Rocks. He wondered why more people hadn't followed them. Maybe they knew this was no escape.

Daniel swam slowly, and kept waiting for Jack to wake up. His fingertips were raw from dragging along the wall, searching. A few times, the wall curved away unexpectedly, and he would lose that anchoring touch. He kicked himself back until he could feel it.

When he rested, he felt for Jack's pulse. Still there. Yes. Felt pretty strong to Daniel, but the fact that Jack wasn't moving wasn't a good sign.

"Jack. Please. Wake up," he said, voice barely above a whisper now. He was so tired. His arm hurt so much from carrying Jack that he could feel it being torn off his body. He was getting cramps in his stomach and legs. He pushed off and continued his search, every kick sending a shock of pain through his body.

Stupid plan. They weren't going to live long enough for Jack to wake up and tell him what a stupid plan it had been, either. Dammit.

Stupid plan, but it worked. His fingers found a lip of rock jutting out a bit less than an arm's length above the water. Daniel grabbed it with one hand. He stretched his arm out to gauge how deep it went. At least the length of his forearm. Good enough.

Shaking with exhaustion and relief, he slid back into the water, let go of Jack just long enough to grab him with both hands and shove him up against the rock to the ledge, and push him over it. He gripped the ledge with both hands now, and went hand over hand along its length to see how far it went. When he got to twenty-five hand widths, he stopped and came back, deciding it was long enough for them both, with room to spare. He hauled himself out of the water.

It was glorious to sit and not swim. He couldn't stop shaking, and there wasn't a part of him that wasn't in pain, and he was ice cold, but at least he wasn't swimming. And he had Jack.

He felt for Jack's pulse. Good. He patted Jack's face again. No reaction. The ledge wasn't wide enough for them both to lie down. Daniel scooted closer, sitting cross-legged and slumped against the wall, and lifted Jack up enough so that Jack's head rested in his lap. He wasn't going to let go, not after his stupid plan had actually worked. No way.

He didn't think he could fall asleep while he hurt so much, but he did.

\-----

Sam ran her hands through her hair and shut her eyes. If that damn headache would just go away.

"Major Carter," said Teal'c, sitting across from her. "Are you well?"

She opened her eyes and looked at him. "I'm okay. But this is so... so..."

Teal'c looked down at the array of open notebooks and photographs spread out in front of him. "It is very difficult," he said.

Give her a mineral, a metal, a gas or plasma. Give her numbers. Give her an end result and tell her to figure out how to get there. That was easy. This, though... It was a puzzle with no solution. Just a bunch of words and disconnected thoughts. She knew Daniel was a brilliant thinker, but she'd never realized how few of his brilliant thoughts he left on paper.

"Teal'c, I'm not sure this is going to work," she said. "I'm not having any luck, are you?"

Teal'c held up a photograph and stared at it. "I believe the answer is here," he said, determined.

Sam looked back down at the notes in front of her, and the ache in her skull flared again. She sighed and tried to make sense of the notes, but her mind kept crowding with worry for Colonel O'Neill and Daniel. Taken so suddenly, and no way to even follow them or figure out why. They needed to get back to the planet and climb down that building and start searching. At least that would be doing something.

Daniel's messy scrawl danced in front of her eyes and she closed them again. And didn't know she'd dozed off until Teal'c's voice woke her up.

"Major Carter."

Sam rubbed her eyes and blinked. "What is it?"

Teal'c placed the photographs in front of her, lining them up to form one picture of the whole wall. "According to Daniel Jackson's notes, these round symbols separate each rule. I count 214 rules on the photographs," he said.

Sam nodded. "I saw that number scribbled somewhere. Daniel counted them, too."

Teal'c looked at her. "I have only found 198 rules translated in these notebooks."

Sam frowned and looked down at the photos. She didn't doubt Teal'c, but she quickly counted the inscribed rules herself. 214. No question.

"That can't be," she said. "Wait. He had one notebook with him, when we went to the planet. The rest must be in there."

Teal'c tilted his head. "That may be. But I believe these represent the notes he took while he was working, and the notebook he took with him contained copies of these notes, so that O'Neill could read the verses of greeting and memorize them."

Sam shook her head. "You're saying Daniel didn't translate the last sixteen rules? That doesn't sound like Daniel."

Teal'c clasped his hands and looked down at the mess of photographs and notebooks. "I do not know if he did. But I believe we must try to translate them so we will have all the rules in front of us."

Sam winced. "Translate?" She ran a hand across her forehead. "Okay. But we'll need help."

_We need Daniel,_ she thought. _Too bad he's not here to figure out what happened to himself and the colonel_.

\-----

He dreamed of falling, in ice.

"Daniel?"

He was falling, in ice... That was Jack's voice. Daniel opened his eyes and saw black.

"Jack?"

Daniel moved his hands over his lap. Jack wasn't there. He felt around frantically until he touched skin. Jack's hand. He grabbed it. Jack turned his hand over and squeezed back and wove their fingers together. They sat there on the ledge, holding hands.

"This doesn't look too good," Jack said. His voice was raspy and quiet.

Daniel wanted to make a joke: _You can see?_ But all he said was, "No." After a few minutes, when Jack didn't say anything, Daniel said, "The water's pretty deep. I don't know how deep. I didn't make it that far. The cavern's big."

Jack's fingers rubbed his. "How bad are you?" he asked.

Daniel sighed. "Not too bad, considering. I ache all over, that's the worst of it."

Jack was silent. Daniel imagined him nodding, thinking it through.

"I waited for you under the well, and I saw the light," Daniel said. "What happened back there?"

Jack's fingers tightened around his. "Macklin," he said quietly. "I was right. He had one of those light weapons."

"That's why you were out for so long."

"Yeah."

"I wonder how you got away," Daniel said. "Someone must have thrown you in."

"The scraper," Jack said.

"The scraper? Why?"

"I don't know. I bet it was, though. He had your axe. Just before Macklin shot me, I saw him holding it, like he was going to use it. I don't know what happened. Next thing I know, I'm freezing to death on this rock, soaked through." Jack stroked Daniel's fingers and stared out into the darkness.

Daniel let go of his hand and moved over until they were sitting shoulder-to-shoulder. He slid his arm behind Jack's back and pulled him into an awkward hug. He rubbed Jack's arms.

"Daniel," Jack said. Just stating a fact. The fact of Daniel.

While he rubbed Jack's arms, Daniel said, "No one followed us. Some rocks have been falling in the water, but that's all. I thought others might come after us."

"Doesn't mean anything," Jack said, overwhelmed with weariness. "Not necessarily. We need to rest. Then we can start looking for a way out."

"The ledge isn't wide enough for us to stretch out side-by-side," Daniel said. Jack had noticed this. "Slide down that way," Daniel told him. "Let me stretch out first. I'll hold you."

"Daniel."

"Jack, my legs are numb from sitting this way. Every muscle in my back aches. And you're shivering worse than I am. I can't keep you all that warm, but it's better than nothing."

Jack dragged himself down the ledge. Daniel said, "Okay." Jack dragged himself back, felt Daniel's wet boots, and dragged himself between Daniel's legs. He came to rest on Daniel's chest, and Daniel wrapped his arms around him. Daniel was right, it was warmer this way.

Jack relaxed. Felt Daniel's chest rise and fall under him. The driving pain in Jack's head receded a little.

He thought he was too cold to fall asleep, but he did, anyway.

He woke up in the same cold blackness, still soaked. Daniel was asleep underneath him, arms loosely wrapped around him. Jack let him sleep for a while, and enjoyed the shelter of his embrace. Then he sat up and scooted further down along the ledge. He stretched his arms and back, stretched his legs, and stood up. Felt along the cold, wet rock as he carefully stepped to the end of the ledge, where it tapered off to be swallowed by the wall. He carefully walked back, counting his steps, and crouched by Daniel's feet.

"Daniel," he said, shaking the toe of one boot. He patted Daniel's shin. "Daniel. We have to go."

"I'm awake," Daniel said, in the thick voice of someone still half-asleep. Jack patted his leg again.

Daniel shifted around, sitting up. "Ow. My leg's numb." Jack heard him stand up and hiss. "Ouch."

"What's wrong? It's not broken, is it?"

"No, no. Just pins and needles. Massive pins and needles." He stomped a few times, and waved his foot around, inadvertantly kicking Jack.

Jack said, "We have to dive down and see if there's a way out. An underground tunnel or something."

Daniel was silent for a moment. "What if there isn't?"

Jack rubbed the back of his head. "We'll have to climb back up the well. I think the pipe goes all the way down into the water, along the wall." But the bigger danger was that they would find a dead-end tunnel in the water and drown before they could make it back here. Jack didn't mention it, and although he was sure Daniel had thought of this, too, he noticed Daniel didn't mention it, either.

"I'll take the first dive," Jack said.

"Wouldn't we cover more territory if we both went?"

"Yeah, but we don't know how big this place is. If one of us got lost, or we couldn't find our way back to the ledge..."

"Okay."

Daniel sat down again, and Jack slid off the ledge and into the water. In the black coldness, the cavern felt huge. Small sounds of rocks falling broke the stillness.

Daniel shivered as he waited, trying to gauge time by counting in his head, but he lost track too many times. Once in a while, he would hear a quiet splash: Jack breaking the surface. He called out Jack's name once, but no reply. His voice still sounded small and thin in here.

He stretched out on the ledge, hugged his arms around his chest, which ached horribly, and waited.

It was taking forever. The darkness and silence and sense of space was oppressive. If Jack didn't come back soon... If they didn't get out of here soon...

The water beneath him splashed and Jack hauled himself onto the ledge, panting and dripping water over Daniel before Daniel sat up and got out of the way.

Jack caught his breath and said, "I found one. Can't tell how far it goes. It's big enough for us to get through, though." He paused, gulping down more breath. "I'll take you there, and you swim into the tunnel, see if you can tell where it goes. There's a hand-hold in the rock just next to it, above the water. I can hold onto that and wait for you. If the tunnel's too far, or gets too narrow, just come back, okay?"

Daniel was more than ready to get started. _Just let this be the way out_. But Jack needed to rest first. Daniel reached over and felt him shivering, and hugged him again, rubbing his arms. Jack leaned back and relaxed slightly.

Some time later, Jack said, "Ready?"

"How will I know where to go?"

Jack shifted around, out of his embrace. Daniel heard the click of Jack's belt buckle, then Jack took his hand and wrapped one end of the belt around his wrist. "Hold onto that. I'm knotting it to a belt loop. Stay by my left side."

"Okay. I'm ready."

They eased into the water together. Daniel had almost forgotten how cold it was. The icy grip of it was a shock to the system and he shuddered.

"Okay," Jack said, and started off. Daniel gripped the belt in one hand and paddled after him, feeling too adrift, too afloat. Flashes of panic would rattle him, but he kept swimming, determined. When he needed air, he tugged on the belt a few times, and Jack brought him back to the surface.

They reached the place Jack had found, and Jack pushed up through the water. Daniel let go of the belt and braced himself against the wall, catching his breath.

"Feel the hand-hold?" Jack asked.

Daniel ran his hand along the wall. When his fingers touched Jack's, Jack guided them to the narrow shelf of rock, just wide enough to grip.

"Dive down straight below, just a little to your left. The tunnel's there. You'll feel the opening. It's not too far down. And if it goes on too far, come back, okay?"

Daniel nodded. Oh, right, like Jack could see that. "Okay," he said.

He rested a little, got ready, then dived. Left... left... where was left? He dragged a hand along the wall, going deeper and deeper. Was this the right way? Then his fingers fell into a space, and he pushed himself toward it, hands finding the curve of the entrance.

He swam into the tunnel. His head bumped the ceiling a few times before he let himself sink lower. He pushed on, trying to sense its length. Was it getting smaller? Narrower?

His head hit the top again and he hurled himself forward, and he was through. He rocketed up to break the surface. There was light. He blinked rapidly, adjusting to it. It was very weak, and he wasn't sure where it was coming from, but it was enough for now. A way out. A way home.

He swam back and got Jack. This time, his eyes were expecting the light and adjusted faster. It was another cavern, full of water, but on the far side was a crack, high above, that let in light.

Jack tread water next to him, looking up at the crack. Then he dived into the water and disappeared.

"Jack?"

Daniel waited, and saw Jack's head lift up from the water by the cavern wall. Jack caught his breath and dived again. Daniel swam for the far side.

He found a narrow ledge a few inches under the water line. He grabbed it, pulled himself onto it and sat there, panting. Something brushed by his leg in the water. Jack rose up beside him, leaning on the ledge.

"I can't find any tunnels," he said in between breaths. "So this is it."

Daniel looked up at the crack. "Do you think we can make it?"

"We'll make it," Jack said firmly, not looking at the crack. The slit of light that came in through the hole painted a shimmering scar on the water.

Jack climbed onto the ledge, which was just wide enough for him to stand on. He knotted one end of his belt, and took Daniel's belt and knotted them together. He tested the strength of the knot, then aimed and tossed the belt rope at the crack. It fell short.

"Even if you can make it," Daniel said, "how are we going to get through there? It's not wide enough."

Jack looked at him. "One thing at a time."

He cast the belt rope again. Closer. He cast again. And again. Until he lost count. Beside him, Daniel wasn't even watching anymore. He was sitting with his head in his hands.

Jack tossed again. The knot caught in the crack, wedged at one end.

"Daniel."

Daniel looked up. "How do we reach it?"

"You climb onto my shoulders. You should be able to reach it that way."

Daniel stood up and stared at the crack, resting his hands on his hips. "It's too narrow."

Jack crouched down. "I know, I know. Just climb up there, and look outside. Maybe there's something out there we can use."

"Jack..." Daniel sighed. "Okay."

He slid over Jack's back and sat on his shoulders. Jack gripped Daniel's legs and stood up slowly. Daniel braced one hand against the wall. When Jack was standing upright, he helped Daniel move his feet and stand up. Good. He was high enough.

Daniel gripped the belt rope, tugged on it to make sure it was secure, and pulled himself up hand over hand. Jack ducked down to avoid getting kicked. Daniel swung from the belts. He got another handhold and the rock around the crack crumbled away. Everything -- rock, belts, Daniel -- fell and crashed into the water.

Jack watched the water, ready to dive in. Daniel bobbed up, gasping. He swam for the ledge, gripping something. He dropped the belts onto Jack's feet and hauled himself up. He had a cut on his chin. Jack touched it, Daniel winced and pulled away, and Jack wiped the blood on his pants.

Daniel sat down, catching his breath. Jack slid an arm over his shoulders and held him. Daniel rested against Jack's shoulder and closed his eyes. When he opened them, he looked past Jack and said, "Well, at least the hole's bigger."

This time Daniel insisted Jack go first. Jack climbed onto Daniel's shoulders and when they both strained, he was able to grip the edge of the hole and pull himself up and over before more rock crumbled and fell. Daniel threw the belt rope up at him, but it was too short to be useful. Jack took off his boots and pants. He twisted his pants and knotted both ends, and lowered one end down. Daniel jumped up and grabbed it. Jack held on with all his strength, flat against the ground. Daniel pulled himself up until he could reach the edge, then rolled out of the hole.

They collapsed on the ground, exhausted, and slept.

\-----

Teal'c clasped his hands behind his back and stared at the wall ahead. Standing next to him, Major Carter stood straight, shoulders back, waiting. Sitting at the desk in front of them, General Hammond watched them and shook his head.

"I just heard from Dr. Perry. She says Teal'c threatened her."

"I did not, General Hammond," Teal'c replied. "I merely suggested she was capable of working more quickly." He glanced down and saw General Hammond's calculating look.

General Hammond addressed Major Carter. "Is this true?"

"Well, sir," Major Carter said nervously. "With all due respect to Dr. Perry, I don't think she understood the importance of getting the translation done fast."

General Hammond looked at them. "Maybe if she hadn't had Teal'c standing over her the whole time criticizing the speed of her handwriting, she would have been able to concentrate better." He paused. "Well, now that she's working on her own, she says the translation is nearly finished."

Major Carter glanced at Teal'c. Teal'c inclined his head.

"But until it's finished," General Hammond continued, "I'm ordering both of you to get some rest."

"But, sir--"

"General Hammond--"

General Hammond stood up. "That's an order. I'll contact you when Dr. Perry is done. Dismissed." General Hammond's stance told Teal'c that protesting would do no good.

As they walked down the corridor together, Major Carter said, "I think I'll leave the base for a while. I was thinking someone should water their plants, get the mail. Want to come along?"

She sounded tired and worried. It was good that she would be getting rest. Teal'c felt weary, too.

"No, Major Carter. I require kel-no-reem."

They reached a fork in the corridor. Major Carter stood and faced him. "We'll get them back," she said softly.

Teal'c bowed his head. "Yes." He walked away from her and went to his quarters.

He prepared the room by arranging and lighting the candles. He sat in the center of them, on the floor, and began to clear his mind. It took some while, for his concern for his friends was heavy and immediate in his thoughts. He hoped they were alive, and safe, and together.

Together. As he let go of one layer of worry, he focused on this thought. He hoped they were together. They were strong individuals, but they were very strong together. There was a bond between them that Teal'c could not quite explain or name. He had seen glimpses of it. Like tracks in the sand which could be read and followed.

Teal'c chose not to follow. It was their destination, not his, and he did not believe they needed to be protected from following this path. They were very strong together.

He believed they were alive, and safe, and together. He put this belief in his heart and freed his mind, and sank deep into meditation.

\-----

The air was heavy and warm. Sluggish. Jack didn't feel like moving, didn't feel like opening his eyes. He was facing the sun, and his front was dry. He rolled over to dry his back. He went back to sleep.

He woke up again because something was crawling on him. He'd felt it on his arm, and now it was on his back, moving quickly. He rolled over and a large purple lizard which looked a bit like a gila monster scurried off. He looked at Daniel, sprawled on his back, one arm hooked over his face, shading his eyes. Another lizard, smaller and blue, was crawling over Daniel's legs.

Jack sat up and ran his hands over his hair and face, waking up. They were outside, at last. Now what?

He wasn't sure. They had to get off this moon and back to Senira, where the stargate was. Unless there was a stargate here. Jack doubted it, somehow. That would be too convenient. But how were they going to get off the moon?

Maybe Macklin had been lying. Maybe they were still on Senira. It sure looked like any ordinary planet. Old mountains. Thick weeds and grass. Rocks and small boulders. Macklin would have said anything to make them feel helpless, and he'd lied about other things. Still, it meant they had to find the city and the stargate, and they had no idea where to start.

"Jack?"

Daniel sat up and hugged his knees.

"You okay?" Jack asked. Daniel nodded.

Jack stood up, got his pants, unknotted them, and put them on. They were still damp. He undid the belt rope and slid his belt on, then put his boots on.

"The way I see it, either Macklin was lying, and we're still on Senira. Or he wasn't lying, and we're on a moon. Either way, we have to find a way back." Jack looked around and wondered how much daylight they had left. It seemed like afternoon. "I think we should check around the mountain first."

He looked down at Daniel, who had his face pressed against his arms. He crouched down and touched Daniel's shoulder.

"I'm all right," Daniel said, muffled by his arms. "Just very, very tired."

He patted Daniel's back. "I know. Me too. But we should start looking."

They carefully skirted the hole in the ground they'd climbed out of, and walked cautiously until they reached a rocky area that fronted the steep face of the mountain. They followed it all afternoon, but there was no obvious way up. When they were on the other side of the mountain, it fell away into a deep canyon which disappeared under a roof of trees.

Shade would be nice. They'd already noticed the heat -- a sticky, cloying heat. Deciding any direction was as good as another, they headed down the canyon, sliding or skidding when the ground was too steep to walk.

Down in the canyon, the humidity was worse, but the shade felt good. The ground flattened out, and they walked through a forest of thin, white-barked trees with wide canopies. Blue and purple lizards darted across their path or climbed up the trees. Huge mosquitoes buzzed past, but never stung. The heat got worse, and Daniel's feet swelled inside his boots. Sweat rolled down his face and back. They'd walked for hours, and they had no idea where they were going.

Daniel stopped. He leaned against a tree and slid to the ground.

"I'm tired and starving," he said, closing his eyes. He felt Jack's shoulder brush against his as Jack joined him.

"I've been thinking," Jack said. "Those lizards..."

Daniel opened his eyes. "Lizards?"

"Well, I don't know what else there is. Just these trees, and I don't see any fruit or nuts on them."

Daniel thought it over. A large, fat blue lizard climbed onto his ankle and blinked at him. He stayed still, and it crawled up his leg.

"Um, Jack?" he said quietly.

The lizard crept over his groin. Daniel sucked in a breath. It reached his stomach and scurried toward his arm. Jack's hand snatched it away.

"That was easy," Jack said, holding the lizard. Its head, tail and legs swung out from his palm.

Daniel watched it. "Does it bite?"

Jack raised an eyebrow and looked at him. "I don't want to find out, do you?" He flexed the fingers of one hand.

The lizard blinked again. Daniel said, "Can't we just stab it with a stick or something?"

Jack didn't say anything. Daniel watched with a hideous fascination as Jack wrapped his hand around the lizard's head and twisted its neck. A sick little clicking sound, and its tail stopped moving. The thought occurred to Daniel that Jack could probably do the same thing to a person, so easily. He'd never really thought about it before. He wiped his sweating palms on his pants legs and stared at the ground.

"Try to find some dry wood," Jack said.

That gave him something to do. Daniel walked through the trees and gathered the driest sticks he could find. He found an old log and brought that, too. The light was fading when he found Jack again. Jack had killed another lizard. Daniel cracked the log against a rock.

"This feels pretty dry," he said.

Jack took off his belt. He picked up a small rock and struck it against the metal flat of his belt buckle to get a spark. Daniel watched him, leaning against a tree, feeling the weight of the thick air all around him. He didn't know he'd dozed off until an odd, smoky smell woke him up.

It was dark. Jack had a small fire going and was roasting the lizards over it. Daniel thought the air would be cool now that it was dark, but it was still sticky and hot. He didn't know how Jack could sit so close to the fire.

After a while, the smoke smelled good. Daniel moved closer and Jack handed him a charred lizard on a stick. It was hot to the touch, and the rough hide peeled away.

The meat was tough, and without much flavor, and it didn't do to think too closely about it being a lizard. But it was all right. Better than starving. Daniel ate it all, down to the bones.

The fire was almost gone. Jack covered it with dirt and put it out. He stretched out on the ground, and Daniel stretched out next to him, and was asleep as soon as his head came to rest on the earth.

The next day, they continued walking away from the mountain, deeper into the forest. The air was like hot molasses, and there was no breeze. When they stopped to rest, lizards walked right over them, unaware of the new division between hunter and hunted.

In the afternoon, when the light was brightest and most intense, the trees thinned out and led to a flat, rocky outcrop. Jack walked over to the edge and a few yards below them was a large pool of water. It was still, but clear. He could see rocks on the bottom.

Daniel walked along the edge and knelt down, tilting his head. He pointed past the pool. "There's a cave."

Jack was looking beyond the pool, where there were flowering bushes growing, and short trees with round, red fruit.

"Let's camp here," he said.

They climbed down next to the cave, which didn't go back very far, but was wide enough. Jack went to try the fruit. The red skin was thick and hard, but inside was soft, sweet pulp. It had a strange flavor, but tasted good. He picked one and tossed it to Daniel, who was drinking water from cupped hands.

Jack found a log with dry wood among the bushes, and started another fire. He went off and killed two lizards while Daniel picked as much red fruit as he could find. It was still bright and hot outside when they ate, using hard red fruit skins as water cups. Afterward, Daniel leaned back against the rocky rise next to the cave and closed his eyes. Jack watched him and listened to mosquitoes buzzing around and the rustling of leaves as lizards scurried through the bushes.

He didn't think he'd ever want to get wet again after the cavern, but he felt hot and dusty and sticky and sore. The pool was too tempting. He stood up, stripped, and slid in. The water was too warm to be refreshing, but felt soothing anyway. It got pretty deep in the center, and he swam around for a bit. On the far bank, he found a shelf under the water and sat there, soaking and massaging his knees. When he looked up, Daniel was standing on the other side, pulling his shirt off.

Jack watched him roll the shirt up and set it down carefully. Daniel took off his boots and socks, and unfastened his pants. He slid them off and stood there for a moment in his undershorts, looking at the water. Jack leaned back on the shelf and admired the view. He shouldn't really be thinking about this here, and now, but he couldn't help himself. The light was hitting Daniel just right, bringing up shadows that highlighted the curves and planes of his body.

Daniel bent over as he took off his undershorts, and the slope of his back and ass was just... perfect. When he stood up straight again, from this distance he was all powerful legs and broad shoulders and flat stomach. Daniel sat down on the edge of the pool and lowered himself into the water. He looked up at Jack, shading his eyes, and waved once. Then he disappeared under the water.

The shadows were getting longer when Jack eased off the shelf and swam back to the other side. Daniel was standing in the middle of the pool, scrubbing his wet hair with his fingers. Jack climbed out of the water, and if there had been a breeze, his skin might have cooled from the contact with the air. But there was no breeze, and the air was still hot and stifling.

Jack wandered off into the bushes to take a leak, came back and put on his undershorts and sat down by the cave. Daniel swam back and got out of the pool, and stood there, dripping in the dying daylight.

Jack followed the lines of his leg, up past his dick and balls, hanging low and soft, above his hip and flat gut, across his smooth, wide chest. He noticed the red scrapes on Daniel's shoulders and automatically checked Daniel's chin to see if the cut there had healed. He couldn't tell, because Daniel's beard was growing in. Still short and scraggly, but enough to hide the cut. When he glanced up from Daniel's chin, Daniel was staring at him.

"What are we going to do?" Daniel asked quietly.

"I don't know," Jack said. He paused and added, "But we'll get out of this."

Daniel sat down next to him, naked, damp. "I've been thinking... They would have sent a rescue team to Senira by now. I hate to say this, but maybe we should've stayed in the mine. If the rescue team contacted the Senirans, they would have known where to look for us."

Jack watched light fade from the pool's surface. "Yeah, I thought of that. But you remember that woman who sent us here. And there was something Macklin said to me, about the guys in charge not caring. I don't think the Senirans give a damn." He sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "Either way, the odds are..."

"Yeah," Daniel said.

There was a pebble near Jack's leg. Jack picked it up and tossed it into the pool. "I thought of something else, though. The mines. They have to do something with all that green stuff, right? If we can find out what they do with it, that could be our way back."

Daniel was quiet for a moment. "Then we should head back to the mountains."

"We've been going more or less parallel to them by my reckoning. We can cross back through the forest and look for a cargo ship, storage containers, anything."

"What if they use their instant transportation technology to move the ore directly from the mines?"

"Daniel."

"Okay, okay. It was just a thought."

Jack stretched out on the ground. He reached over and found Daniel's rolled-up shirt and used that for a pillow. Daniel curled up next to him and rested his head on Jack's shoulder. Jack stroked his damp, warm skin.

The light was gone, and the night was still. Lizards walked through the bushes and into the forest. Leaves fell into the water with the softest of sounds. Lizards crawled over their entwined legs and into the pool. There was no breeze, and the air was heavy.

Jack wasn't asleep, Daniel could tell. He stayed still for a long time, thoughts sluggish and strange. This place was strange, secret. Earlier, when Jack had talked so sensibly about finding a way back, for a split second Daniel had had a panicked thought: _But we can't leave here_.

No. Of course they had to leave. And he _wanted_ to leave. He wanted go back home, to work and books and his own bed and real food, and he never wanted to eat lizard again. But here, this place...

They were alone here. No one had followed them (and he still wondered why) and no one had found them. There were no signs that any other human had ever been here, much less lived here. The lizards were so easy to catch because they had no fear of them. The mosquitoes ignored them because they were unknown.

It was far from paradise. It was oppressively hot and humid, and the food selection was depressing. And yet... that afternoon, when Daniel had woken up from his nap and seen Jack in the water, naked and relaxing, he'd felt the power of this place. The promise of alone-ness. And when Jack had watched him strip, and when Jack had stared up at him when he got out of the pool, maybe Jack had felt it, too.

Daniel smoothed his hand across Jack's chest. His fingers found Jack's dog tags, plain metal in the fuzz of Jack's chest hair. He toyed with them absently. Jack's hand glided down his back, following the curve of his spine, then up again, over his shoulder blades. Jack's hands -- so strong, rough, capable of killing, capable of touching him so gently.

Daniel let go of the dog tags and sat up. "It's too hot to sleep," he said, rubbing his face.

"Daniel..."

Daniel stood up and walked over to the pool, sat down on the edge and lowered himself inside. The water hadn't cooled much. He waded around in the dark, smooth pebbles under his feet. He heard Jack get into the water and he looked back. He could just make out a darker shape in the night. He waded around some more, unsure how far he was from the edge and enjoying the uncertainty. He stopped and looked up at the sky, and Jack was there, wrapping his arms around Daniel's waist and kissing the back of his neck.

The water flowed around them, warm and teasing. Daniel leaned back into Jack's embrace. Jack swayed and Daniel smiled softly, moving with him. He pressed closer and felt Jack's chest against his back -- warm skin and curls of hair and two metal tags at the end of a metal string. Jack's arms around him, strong and tight, and Jack's lips caressing his neck.

_I want you so much_.

He wanted everything. He wanted just this. Didn't matter. Jack was here, in the water, with him.

Daniel moved subtly, rubbing slowly against Jack, his ass pressed against Jack's cock. Jack slid one hand down Daniel's stomach, and reached to stroke his balls and prick. Oh, so good. Always so good when Jack touched him like this. Jack kissed his shoulder and that perfect place on his neck, and stroked him steadily, in the still water. Daniel writhed and rubbed against him, and felt Jack's cock lift and grow hard. Jack's hunger for him. Nothing felt this good.

Daniel reached back and parted his ass, and Jack's cock slid between, heavy and hot. Jack kissed his shoulder and thrust, moving so easily, wet skin to wet skin. Daniel reached back further, to hold Jack's thighs as he rocked. Jack's hand tightened around his shaft, squeezing as he stroked and pulled. Daniel thrust steadily, fucking his hand, and with each backward push rubbed harder against Jack's cock.

Slippery in the water, Jack's cock slid between his thighs. Daniel shuddered at the hot, solid feel of it behind his balls. He squeezed his thighs together and Jack moaned against his neck and thrust forward. Jack pulled on his cock, harder and faster, jerking him off. His arm moving so fast it splashed the water. And between his thighs, Jack's cock, hard and full and thrusting. Jack's hips pushing against his ass. Jack's chest plastered against his back.

Daniel tensed, pushed back against Jack, grabbed Jack's hand and squeezed it even harder around his cock as he came, fast and fierce. Jack kept pushing and thrusting, and Daniel held on until Jack stilled, and thick fluid hotter than the water poured between his legs, against his skin. He shuddered and leaned back heavily, and Jack held him, breathlessly kissing his neck.

Jack clasped his wrists over Daniel's stomach. Daniel lifted his feet from the pebbled pool bottom and tried to float in Jack's arms. Jack licked the curve of his neck and behind his ear, and swayed in the water.

This place was so quiet, so empty. Just the water, and rocks, and trees, and lizards, and the night sky above. No breeze, and the air was thick around them, humid, wet, sweaty. Languid, lazy heat.

They were alone here.

It was a temptation. It was frightening. And it would pass, Jack thought. In the morning, they'd move on. There was no other choice. But right now, here, in the dark, in the water, in the silence, they were alone. Daniel's body pressed to his. Warm, wet skin. Breathing steadily, moving subtly. Strength and desire. Mind in a million different places at once, but Jack was certain that one of those places was here with him.

He held Daniel close and kissed every inch of Daniel's neck that he could reach. Daniel leaned back and tried to float again. Jack looked up at the sky and stared at it for a while.

"The night's three wives," he said.

"What?" Daniel asked.

"I thought they might be stars," Jack said. "See the bright one there? There's another one at eleven o'clock from it, and a third directly below that one. The night's three wives."

Daniel stared at the sky. Jack planted a soft kiss on one shoulder.

"Where's the husband?" Daniel asked after a while.

"I was thinking about that. I think we're really on a moon, and the moon is the husband. From Senira, you'd see the moon rise first, then the three wives."

Daniel rubbed his back against Jack's chest. "The departing night who sinks below his wives in satiated peace," he quoted softly.

Jack kissed his ear. Daniel swayed in the water and ran his fingers along Jack's forearms. Jack brushed his lips over Daniel's sideburn.

"Satiated," Jack murmured.

"Uh-huh," Daniel said, pressing back and rubbing his ass against Jack. Jack patted Daniel's hip.

Daniel turned around, and Jack kissed him long and hard. He wanted Daniel with such force it was almost scary. Would be scary, if it didn't feel so right, so obvious.

Daniel broke from the kiss. Jack pulled himself up from the pool and stretched out along the edge. Daniel waded in the water for a while, a shadow moving slowly. Jack closed his eyes and listened to the water move with him. He heard the soft splash as Daniel climbed out, and felt water dripping on him as Daniel sat next to him.

Daniel stretched out next to him, wet and warm, shoulder and arm touching Jack's. His fingers brushed along Jack's inner forearm, stroking. Jack felt the pull of the heat, and the night, and sleep. Daniel whispered, "Good night," to him, but he was too far gone to whisper it back.

\-----

Daniel woke up and blinked at the light pouring down over him. He was sweaty and damp. It was already incredibly hot. Something was... He glanced down. A lizard was sleeping on his stomach. He picked it up and set it aside and sat up.

A dark shape moved under the water in the pool. Daniel watched Jack swimming for a while. He still felt dull and sleepy, but was warmly content thinking about last night. The daylight beat down on his back. Daniel moved to the cave and ate two of the red fruits. He had to shake this tired feeling. He got up, pulled on his clothes, and went for a walk through the bushes and fruit trees.

He found a long, flexible twig and played with it as he walked, his thoughts returning to the moment that had sent them here. What had they done that could be construed as treason? They had followed the inscribed protocol. Maybe the protocol had changed. Or maybe... Maybe his translation was wrong. Daniel hated to consider this, but it was a possibility. So many of the alien languages he came across had linguistic variations he'd never encountered before, and there was always a fair amount of guess work and approximation involved.

He stopped and absently twisted the twig until it snapped. He dropped it and looked around. He was standing in a wild grove and couldn't see the pool anymore. His shirt, drenched with sweat, was sticking to him. He turned around and followed the treeline back. When he reached the pool, he pulled his clothes off and jumped into the water and wished it were cold.

He lifted his head above the surface and saw Jack stretched out on the bank. Jack turned his head without sitting up and said, "Where were you?"

"I went for a walk." Daniel glanced up at the sky and scratched his cheeks and jaw with both hands. His beard was growing in and it itched like hell. Jack was pleasantly stubbly and didn't seem to mind his.

Daniel rubbed the cut on his chin and swam to the edge. "What time should we start going?" he asked.

Jack looked up at the sky. "When the light gets lower. Get some rest before then."

He closed his eyes and Daniel pushed off, taking a leisurely swim around the pool. He came back to stare at Jack, to watch him dozing. The light was gold on Jack's skin, which gleamed with water or sweat or both. Long legs stretched out, flat belly, hairy chest. Arms by his sides, completely at rest. Head tilted away from Daniel, and Daniel could see the tendons in his neck, the taut curve. The thin string of metal around his throat. The shades of grey and silver in Jack's hair.

Daniel rested his arms on the edge of the pool and admired the view. He kissed an old scar above Jack's knee, and was tempted to lick the lean line of Jack's thigh, up to his dick, curved softly in rest.

Tempted. Yes.

He waded a little further along the bank. He looked down at Jack, still asleep. At Jack's cock, still asleep. He licked his lips and flexed his fingers. He smoothed one hand over Jack's thigh and reached to cup Jack's balls. Jack twitched, and Daniel leaned in and licked them. Paused. Licked again.

Warm. Salty. Male. Daniel ran his tongue over them again, hesitated, then licked the shaft of Jack's cock.

"Oh, god," Jack said, voice quiet and hoarse. His body shuddered and tensed as his cock stirred beneath Daniel's tongue. Daniel licked again. Kept licking.

Warm. Salty. Male. An odd taste -- fleshy. But the way it moved, and strained as it swelled, and heated with each heartbeat pulse through the prominent vein, made his mouth water. He parted his lips and slid them around the tip.

Jack made a soft, unidentifiable sound and clutched Daniel's shoulder, stopping short of digging his fingers in. Daniel caressed Jack's stomach with his free hand, sliding his fingers up to Jack's chest, to touch one nipple and pinch it. He swirled his tongue around Jack's tip, found the slit and tasted it. Jack's fingers tightened on his shoulder.

Daniel explored with his tongue. Jack breathed harder, and swelled between Daniel's lips. Oh, mmm, yes. Daniel's cock throbbed and lifted in the water as he held Jack's balls and lowered his head, bringing more of Jack inside his mouth.

Hot and salty and male and full, Jack's cock filled his mouth, and he sucked it. Heard Jack hiss and sucked again. Daniel's pulse was beating in his ears in a sort of buzz, and he shivered. He went lower, wanted more, trying to take in more. It was wonderful -- full of Jack, consuming his taste. Then more was too much, too full, too deep. He lifted his head, caressing Jack's shaft with his lips.

Jack hissed again and moved his hips, and Daniel realized that Jack was trying not to thrust. He sucked and licked the tip of Jack's cock, and started to go low again. Jack covered his hand, carefully lifted Daniel's fingers from his balls and guided them to his shaft. Oh, yes. Yes. Daniel wrapped his hand around the base of Jack's cock and squeezed and rubbed it.

Oh, yes. This was going to work. He held Jack in his hand and in his mouth, and stroked with his palm and with his tongue. Sucked and swirled and licked and squeezed and pulled. Rubbed and pinched Jack's nipple. And, oh, Jack writhed and thrust, which only made Daniel hungrier, increased the buzz. He sucked harder, drinking and tasting the slickness on his tongue, jerking on Jack's cock.

He felt it. In his hand, in his mouth, he could feel it, so close now, and oh god, he was really doing this. In the water, his cock pounded and stood flat against his stomach, and the buzz was so intense, everything was so intense, he felt feverish. Jack was about to come, in his mouth, inside him. So close. So, so close. Then, oh, there.

Strange and fast and thick and hot, and Daniel swallowed. Had to, it was all he could think of. Oh, god, there was more? This he could taste -- what was that taste? -- before he swallowed again, and it hit him: he was drinking Jack's come, had Jack's cock in his mouth, pouring, and he was drinking it down.

He came.

Shudders, buzzing, fever heat. Jack's come down his throat. Oh, god.

Jack gently combed his fingertips through Daniel's hair. Daniel carefully released him and rested his head on Jack's thigh. He smoothed his hand down Jack's leg, smoothed the other back and forth over Jack's chest.

Light sparkled on the water. The heavy, sluggish air closed in around them. A fat lizard walked across Jack's shoulders and along the bank.

Daniel pulled himself out of the water, climbed over Jack, dripping water, and lay down beside him, on his back, closing his eyes. Jack lifted his head a little and looked down at Daniel's cock, curious. Yeah, thought so. Huh. Wow.

He shifted onto his side and propped up on one arm. He rested his other hand on Daniel's smooth, moist chest.

"I can't believe you just did that," Jack said.

Daniel opened his eyes, blinking. "Me neither."

Jack twitched an eyebrow. "I'm guessing you liked it."

Daniel half-smiled but looked thoughtful. He clasped his hands under his head. "Yes. It's sort of strange, though."

"Strange?" Jack frowned a little and glanced down at himself.

When he looked back at Daniel, Daniel was watching him steadily with the same half-smile. Daniel murmured, "I'm sure I'll get used to it."

Oh, christ. Jack pulled him into a kiss, a deep slow kiss. Wondering if he was tasting himself on Daniel's tongue, but no, it was just Daniel taste, familiar, maybe a little different. But when Daniel sucked on his tongue, god, it sent aftershocks, which Daniel damn well knew.

He drew back, and Daniel settled against the ground and closed his eyes and looked faintly smug, faintly something else. Jack stroked along Daniel's jaw with the back of one finger, feeling how his beard was growing in. Daniel frowned.

"I can't wait to shave."

"It's not really you," Jack agreed.

Daniel raised one eyebrow, eyes still closed. "Too 'escaped convict'?" he asked.

Jack smiled a little. "Yeah, something like that."

He watched Daniel fall asleep, and felt drowsy himself, but shook himself out of it. He got up, and got dressed, and wandered off to hunt lizards.

\-----

Sam opened the door to Daniel's apartment and stepped inside. She almost called out for him. Force of habit. She'd done the same thing at Colonel O'Neill's.

She piled Daniel's mail on top of the dining table and went over to the windows. The plant she'd given him last Christmas wasn't here. Maybe outside, on the balcony. She opened the door and looked around. No plant, but there was something else. Daniel had a hibachi?

Sam smiled and tried to imagine him hunched over a hibachi, out here, alone. No patio furniture -- that was very Daniel. She still couldn't quite picture him grilling stuff on a hibachi. Shaking her head, she went back inside and scanned the living room for the plant.

It wasn't here, so maybe the bedroom. She hesitated. Going in there felt... weird. She frowned at herself. Why should it feel weird? She went into his bedroom.

Still no plant. The bed was unmade and bare, stripped of sheets. On one corner sat a laundry basket with neatly folded sheets piled inside. Next to it was a neatly folded comforter. She ran a hand over it and smelled clean laundry smell. Daniel had spent his time off doing laundry. That thought filled her with an irrational sadness and she stood still, staring at the empty, bare bed.

It was too much like a hospital bed, after the patient has died. Sam walked back into the living room, checked the kitchen and bath and even the front closet. Okay, Daniel had gotten rid of the plant. He could have told her. She sighed and looked around one last time.

No plant, but a hibachi. Shrugging, she left the apartment and locked it up. Daniel was hard to figure sometimes.

Walking to her car, she replayed the moment in her mind when he and Colonel O'Neill had disappeared together. Why? There had to be a reason. It was so senseless and random unless there was a reason for it. If there was a reason, they could figure out a solution and get them back. Cause and effect.

Meanwhile, were they safe? Were they injured? She wouldn't believe they were dead. No, she was sure they weren't.

She drove back to base. Yes, she'd follow orders, and get some rest. In her lab, after she ran through a few more simulations...

\-----

Jack crouched next to Daniel and stared at him. Asleep, lips parted, looking dorkier than usual because he had a big blue lizard lounging next to his head.

"Daniel."

He shook Daniel's shoulder. Daniel turned his head away, frowning, and bumped his nose against the lizard. It didn't move. Daniel opened his eyes and sat up.

"It's time to go," Jack said.

Daniel nodded and gathered his clothes. He got dressed and Jack handed him some fruit. "I figure we should take a few of these. I don't remember seeing any of those trees near the mountains."

Daniel put them into the patch pockets on his pants, and Jack handed him some meat.

"What's this?" Daniel said, turning the charred strips around in his fingers.

"Lizard."

Daniel looked up at him. "Lizard jerky?"

Jack shrugged. "Just in case our luck runs out with the lizards and the dry wood."

Daniel stuffed those into his pockets, too, and stood looking at the pool. "I wish we could take some water."

"Yeah. Maybe there's more up there, though. This pool has to be fed from somewhere."

"Yeah."

Daniel still stood there, looking. Jack felt it, too. He touched Daniel's shoulder. "Come on."

They left the pool and entered the forest again, and trudged through it, toward the mountains. The light was low and cast long shadows through the trees, until it was all shadow, and only patches of grey shone through the leaves overhead.

It was dark when the ground started to rise and slope upward. They had to hold onto each other and feel around the trees to keep from walking into one. The trees began to thin out, replaced by rocks and bushes. A low starlight lit just enough for them to see, and climb up part of the way, out of the forest.

Jack rested against a boulder, staring at the sky. "That's Senira. Gotta be. It's so close."

Daniel looked up but didn't say anything. They kept climbing under the light of the planet.

When Senira set, it was too dark. They'd found level ground and stopped for the night. They had a small dinner of lizard jeky and shared one of the red fruits. Jack stretched out on the ground. Daniel's fingers poked and prodded as he fumbled around to find him and stretch out next to him. Jack slid his arm around Daniel's waist and rested against him. Daniel stroked Jack's forearm.

"So, Jack?"

"Yeah?"

"I want you," Daniel said quietly.

Jack rubbed his cheek against Daniel's shoulder. "I know."

"I mean, I want..."

Jack felt a sharp ache of lust and longing. "Yeah. Me too."

Daniel was silent for a moment. Then he said, gesturing over Jack's arm, "I want you, you know, _a lot_."

"Daniel."

"Okay, okay. Just so you know."

"I know." Jack paused, kissed Daniel's scratchy jaw, and said again, "I know."

Daniel sighed, and he felt Daniel relax. Felt Daniel's chest rising and the living warmth of his body like a shelter around him. He rested his head on Daniel's shoulder and watched the night until sleep lured him.

He dreamed he was swimming in a pool full of floating, fat lizards, and Daniel sat on the bank, tossing a round, red fruit into the air. And that bastard from the mines, Macklin, was standing next to Daniel, saying something Jack couldn't hear, and they both laughed. He woke up irritated with Daniel for laughing at him until he could shake the dream away.

Daniel was sitting up, looking out over the canyon below. "We climbed farther than I thought we did," he said.

Jack stood up and looked out. "Yeah." He turned toward the mountain. "Still a long way to go."

They climbed higher, over rocks and boulders and tough, short bushes with brittle leaves. Heat followed the day, swelling as the light grew stronger. They drank the juice from one of the red fruits until, after hours of climbing, they found a tiny stream trickling from a crack in the rock. They balanced precariously on a narrow, steep ledge, and reached for the water with cupped hands, drinking all they could. The water was cold. It tasted wonderful.

Daniel wasn't sure where they were or how long they'd been climbing. He wondered how big this moon was and how many days they'd spend wandering around looking for a way back to Senira. And even if they made it to Senira, how were they going to reach the stargate? It wasn't hopeless, it was just impossible to imagine from here. Too many unknowns.

They rested for a while when the day was at its hottest, finding a relatively level area to stretch out on and doze. Sluggish after the nap, they ate lizard jerky and kept climbing. Jack was trudging behind Daniel now. Daniel kept walking and climbing, watching the ground, on auto-pilot.

"I see something."

Daniel walked ahead about a yard before it registered. He stopped and turned around. "What?"

Jack crouched next to a boulder and shaded his eyes, looking ahead, into the canyon. Daniel sat down beside him and rubbed his face, dusty, tired.

"It's metal," Jack said. "I can see the light glinting off of it. Can't tell how far away it is."

"What is it?"

Jack glanced back at him. "Who knows? But it's the first sign of civilization since we escaped."

Daniel dragged himself to his feet. "Onward we go, then."

They walked for a long time before Daniel could get a good look at it. Even then, it was hard to tell what it was. It was big, and sitting in the canyon, and the trees below hid most of it from view. They found a dried out stream bed that ran down the mountain and used it to climb down most of the way. Then they walked along with the metal thing in sight between the trees.

"A building?" Daniel asked, keeping his voice low just in case they weren't as alone here as they had been.

Jack didn't answer and kept going. The day was slowly fading, casting long shadows. A little further, and Jack stopped. He crouched down and pointed.

"Recognize that?" he said.

Daniel squinted and looked ahead. He recognized it. It was a barrel like the ones they'd used in the mine, sitting down in the canyon, not far from them. They climbed the rest of the way down, and Jack took the lead, silently stealing forward to scout ahead. Daniel kept looking back, alert now to every sound around them, every tree, every lizard that moved across their path.

When they reached the barrel, Jack abruptly knelt behind a tree and motioned for Daniel to do the same. The closest one wasn't nearly wide enough, but Daniel didn't think he had time to look for a better one. He crouched down behind it, checking over his shoulder before peering ahead.

Two men in black uniforms strode up to the barrel. They grasped handholds set into the sides, lifted it, and carried it away, toward the metal thing. Daniel looked out and saw a ramp leading up into the side of it. The men carried the barrel up the ramp and inside.

Jack crept over and crouched beside him. "Cargo ship. Gotta be."

Daniel looked over at him. "So, what? We just sneak in and stow away?"

Jack lifted his eyebrows. "You have a better plan?"

"No. I'm just verifying that's our plan."

Jack patted his shoulder and stood up. "Come on."

They cautiously approached the ramp, staying close to the trees in case they needed cover. No one came out of the ship or appeared behind them. They climbed up the ramp and inside.

They were in the cargo hold. It was filled with barrels stacked high. They crept between the barrels, looking out for guards. It was a maze, and Daniel lost track of where they were in relation to the door and ramp. When they reached a wall, he looked back and could see a trace of late afternoon light coming in beyond haphazard columns of barrels. They stood in the opposite corner. The hold wasn't as a big as he thought it would be, but it was still a large space.

"Now what?" he whispered.

Jack walked around some barrels stacked near the corner, peering into the spaces between them. A few columns down, he stopped and motioned for Daniel to join him. Jack slid sideways into the space between columns. Daniel followed, wincing as his nose bumped against a barrel. He sucked in his gut, and Jack pulled on his arm, and he was inside a circle of barrels.

There was room for them both to sit. They sat facing each other, side by side, not talking in case there were guards roaming. After the rush of sneaking in, the waiting was tedious, and Daniel relaxed. He leaned back and closed his eyes and half napped, half listened for guards, alarms, engines, anything.

When the lights went out, he jerked awake at the change. A familiar greenish glow came from above. He blinked and focused on Jack, who was watching him. Daniel waited for the ship to show signs of moving. Waited. And waited. He closed his eyes again and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

\-----

Major Carter entered Daniel Jackson's office carrying a cup of coffee. She sat down at the desk, across from Teal'c, and picked up a folder.

"Are these the notes from Dr. Perry?"

"Yes," Teal'c replied, opening Daniel Jackson's notebook. "It appears that the instructions on the wall were listed in order of importance."

Major Carter took a sip of coffee and set down her cup. "Daniel began at the top. Maybe he ran out of time before he could finish the last sixteen." She frowned and turned the page.

Teal'c read through Dr. Perry's notes again, and checked them against notes Daniel Jackson had made. The repeated words formed a connection.

"I believe this is significant," he said, and read aloud Rule 202, "'No man may act as king, or be greeted as king, in the absence of the king. The prince and his lord will be greeted and the king will be respected with silence.'"

Major Carter stared at him. Teal'c continued to Rule 203. "'No man may act as prince, or be greeted as prince, in the absence of the prince. His lord will be greeted and the prince will be respected with silence.'"

Major Carter picked up Daniel Jackson's notebook. "'The lord will wear blue,'" she read. "We were met by the lord and his pages, according to the colors they were wearing."

"And O'Neill greeted the lord, the prince, and the king by bowing," Teal'c said.

"He should have stayed quiet? He shouldn't have bowed?" Major Carter asked.

Teal'c frowned, reading further. Major Carter interrupted his thoughts by saying, "Oh, no. I think I just found the rule Daniel broke." She showed him the page and pointed to it. Teal'c read: _No man may address the lord, the prince, or the king until the greetings have been exchanged, and all men present are given leave to speak_.

"Daniel Jackson spoke to the lord only once," Teal'c said.

"Apparently once is enough," Major Carter said. She ran a hand through her hair and rested her elbows on the desk. "This is impossible. 214 rules for saying hello. How are visitors supposed to understand all of this?"

Teal'c finished reading and looked up at her. "Read the final rule."

Major Carter sighed and picked up the folder again. "'Any man who cannot read and follow this tablet must bow low when greeted and remain silent. The lord, the prince, and the king will consider the greetings exchanged, and the man will be given leave to speak. Such may barbarians arrive.'"

She sat back and shook her head. "No. Don't tell me. All of this could have been avoided?"

Teal'c looked at her and folded his hands over the notebook. He raised one eyebrow.

"But..." She paused and winced. "You're right." She glanced through the folder again. "At least now we have a way to approach them and ask where Daniel and Colonel O'Neill are."

Teal'c gathered the papers and notebooks into a neat pile, wondering how successful such a mission would be, among people who hid the most useful information at the bottom of a long list. Such people did not seem trustworthy, in his opinion, and this made him anxious for his friends.

"Let us inform General Hammond," he said.

\-----

Two sounds woke Jack up: a low thrumming coming from underneath him, and human voices. He sat still, palms flat on the floor, and felt a deep, mechanical vibration. Maybe, finally, they were going to go somewhere. _Better be goddamn Senira,_ he thought. _Just drop us off right in front of the gate and we'll be on our way_.

The voices grew louder.

"Lot 463 through lot 485," said one.

A pause. "Entered," said another.

"Lot 486 through lot 501," said the first one, a man.

"Entered." The second voice was female.

The man spoke again. "That's it for this shipment."

Another pause. "Manifest received," the woman said. Her voice changed, became less formal. "I can't wait to get home."

_You and me both, sister,_ Jack thought sourly. He glanced at Daniel, who was still zonked out, and leaned over him to peer between the barrels, but he couldn't see anyone.

"Tough time of it?" the guy asked.

"Not for me. But did you hear about Camp Seventeen? They had a riot, and Security and Control had to be called in. Made us pretty nervous." The woman's voice moved, like she was pacing.

"It didn't spread, did it?"

"No. But something like that always makes you think." Her voice lowered. Jack moved Daniel's feet out of the way and sat next to the gap in the barrels, listening.

"The scrapers started it, apparently," she said. "I heard they killed over thirty miners, and somehow one of them got hold of a light rod. Must have killed a guard for it, but Security's not saying anything about that."

The man snorted, as if this was only to be expected.

"Anyway," the woman said, "it was a bloodbath when Security got there. They had to blast one of the tunnels and close down the water supply, and chain the survivors up. They were talking about mass executions last I heard. No other camps want to take the ones who were left alive."

Jack sat back. Had to be. What else could it be? Explained why no one had followed them. Damn.

The man was saying something, but Jack had missed most of it. All he caught was, "... report it."

The woman's voice drifted further away. "Of course not," she said.

Jack heard their footsteps fade into silence. He waited for a few minutes, then shook the toe of Daniel's boot. Daniel tried to kick and curl away, and Jack shook it again, harder. Daniel opened his eyes, blinking and squinting.

"Are we moving?" he whispered.

Jack nodded. "There were some people here, taking inventory, but I think they're gone. I'm going to take a look outside."

It felt good to stand up, stretch the legs, straighten the back. For a guy in as good a shape as Jack knew he was in, he sure had a lot of sore spots these days. He watched Daniel stand up without any hesitation, and wasn't sure whether to envy him or admire him for it.

Jack slid through the gap in the barrels and looked around. No sign of any guards. The hold was dark except for the eerie green glow coming from above the stacks of barrels. Jack wandered between the barrels and Daniel followed. They did a complete sweep of the hold and found no one.

"Now what?" Daniel asked. They were standing near the hatch where they'd entered. Jack looked at the clear cube stuck into the wall beside it, figured it was a lock of some sort, and decided it was probably safer not to touch it. He made sure he stood between it and Daniel.

"I guess we wait it out," Jack said. He looked up at the ceiling. "Of course, if they have monitors up there, we're toast."

Daniel shaded his eyes and looked up, too. "I don't see anything. Just the lights. Although a civilization with such sophisticated technology would have invented a non-detectable monitoring system by now."

With that cheery thought in his head, Jack continued exploring along the walls. He found another clear cube and guessed there was a door nearby. Daniel touched a finger to the cube, and Jack held his breath, waiting for the klaxons and arrival of heavily armed guards, but nothing happened.

Daniel folded his arms over his chest and scowled at the cube. "What is it with aliens and doors that blend in with the wall? Doorways have special significance and symbolism in most human cultures. From simple openings to elaborately decorated doors with carvings and stained glass. You'd think it wouldn't be such a rare phenomenon..."

Jack wandered off and discovered a pedestal thing with a flat, smooth screen. There were squiggles on it. "Hey, Daniel," he said. "You read this stuff. What is this?"

Daniel stood beside him, tilting his head, leaning closer and squinting. Jack left him alone, let him do his language thing. Too bad they'd never gotten his glasses back.

After a while, Daniel stood back and said, "It's safety instructions, as far as I can make out. How many barrels to stack at once, and what to do if one falls over."

Jack rested his hands on his hips and looked at the barrels. "That stuff inside is dangerous?" Radioactive? Explosive? Something they could use when the ship landed on the planet?

"No. Precious." He looked at the screen and read, "'How to protect contents from damage.'"

Jack touched the screen. "Is this it? Nothing else?"

"If there's anything else here, I don't know how to call it up," Daniel said.

Jack went back to the clear cube next to the doorway and touched it. Nothing. He tried pulling, pushing, and finally pounding on it, and nothing happened. "Looks like we're staying in here," he said.

Daniel looked around at the stacks of barrels and the ceiling. "Well, at least if one of the barrels falls over, we'll know what to do."

After another sweep of the cargo hold to look for anything they could use, they sat down among the barrels and shared some lizard meat and the last of the red fruits. If the ship didn't reach Senira soon, rations were going to be a problem. Even after they got to Senira... One crisis at a time, Jack decided. Cross that bridge later.

In the meantime, for sneaking onto a ship and stowing away in the hold, this was relatively boring. Nothing here but barrels and a stupid set of safety instructions with tips like, _Stack barrels evenly so they do not fall_.

Jack stretched out on the floor and clasped his hands behind his head. He stared up at the ceiling for a while, going through escape options once they reached the planet, then watched Daniel futzing with the rind of the fruit. He pressed the strips of it flat against the floor, then tore those strips into smaller pieces. When he had a pile of small pieces, he took each one up and picked at it carefully.

After twenty minutes or so of this, Jack asked him, "What are you doing?"

Without looking up from his work, Daniel said, "Making cards."

Jack counted the little squares in front of him. "There's only thirty-eight pieces here."

"I'm only making three suits." Daniel glanced at him over the square he was holding. "Better odds, anyway."

Jack picked up one of the finished squares and saw where Daniel had carved into it with his thumbnail a four and a heart. He helped Daniel make cards until the three suits were done, then they played cards, holding tiny red pieces of fruit rind.

"You're cheating," Jack accused during the eighth game.

"I am not."

"Are too."

Daniel placed his cards face down and heaved an exasperated sigh. "How can I cheat when we only have three suits?"

Jack held his cards close to his chest. "You're telling me that you getting three three-of-a-kind hands in a row is coincidence? Luck?"

Daniel picked up his cards. "Yes." He rearranged a couple of cards. "By the way, you owe me $900 already."

"Yeah, right. Whatever."

"Sore loser."

"Card sharp."

Jack revealed his hand -- a pair of fours -- and waited. Daniel glanced at him quickly and bit his lip. "Honestly, Jack..." he said as he laid down his cards. "It's luck of the draw. I swear."

Jack sighed at Daniel's pair of sevens. "Luck," he said. "When we get back, remind me to take you to Vegas."

"That makes it $1075, I think."

"Daniel."

"I'll take a personal check."

Jack gathered the cards, carefully shuffled them, picked off any crumbling bits of rind, and dealt the next hand.

\-----

Sam was afraid they wouldn't show up again. She and Teal'c had been here for almost two hours already. She wandered out onto the balcony and peered over the edge, thinking about how much rope she had with her. Teal'c stood in the doorway to the room where the stargate was, holding his staff and waiting. As if he could bring them here by sheer force of will. Well, maybe he could. He was Teal'c, after all.

Sam stared out at the low buildings surrounding the tower and tapped her fingers on her P-90. Great. Now _she_ was doing it. She self-consciously stilled her fingers and walked back over to Teal'c.

"And if they don't show, then what?" she asked.

"We continue waiting," Teal'c said gravely.

Not surprised by his answer, Sam nevertheless had a couple of other options in mind. She was about to suggest these when six men appeared in the room where the stargate was. Teal'c immediately fell to his knees and bowed low. Sam copied his movements, and they remained there for a few minutes before the tall man in blue said, "I give you leave to speak. You may rise."

Teal'c and Sam stood up. The man asked, "Why have you returned here yet again? We do not wish to trade with you."

Teal'c said, "We have come here to find our friends and take them home."

The man in blue -- the lord, Sam assumed from Daniel's notes -- exchanged looks with his pages. Behind them stood three men in grey carrying the weapons they'd used on Colonel O'Neill and Daniel. Sam kept her eye on them.

"Your friends are not here," the lord said.

"They committed treason," the page wearing brown said, narrowing his eyes at Teal'c. The lord gestured and the page stepped back.

Teal'c stayed calm. The lord was the same height, maybe an inch or so taller, but lean and sickly looking compared to Teal'c. Teal'c stared at the man impassively and said, "If they offended you, the offense was not intentional. If you will return them to us, we will leave your planet immediately. Please bring them to us."

The man in brown said, "There is no excuse for treason. The laws are written here, for all to see."

The lord ignored him and turned to his other page. They whispered together, and when the lord faced Teal'c again, he looked nervous. Sam clutched her P-90.

The lord eyed Teal'c's staff weapon for a moment, then said, "The punishment for treason is death," he said. He flicked a glance at Sam, as if just noticing her, and his gaze rested on her P-90 before he continued, "However, if your friends were not agitants, the punishment would be commuted to life service."

"Bring them here immediately," Teal'c said, voice raising slightly with his anger. The grey guards stepped closer.

The lord said nothing. His red page spoke up. "We cannot."

In a split second, Teal'c had his staff weapon aimed at the lord's heart and primed. The grey guards pointed their weapons at Sam and Teal'c. Sam trained her P-90 on the closest one.

The red page hastily amended, "Not immediately. We can bring them, but it will take time."

Teal'c stared into the lord's eyes. "How much time?"

"A day," the red page answered.

Teal'c slowly lowered his staff weapon. "We will return for them."

The lord stood up straight. "When you do, see that you observe all laws. The only reason you are still alive is that you greeted me properly, as barbarians. I will excuse your barbarian behavior once, but no more than once."

Before Teal'c could respond, the guards aimed the light weapons at the floor, and the six men disappeared.

Teal'c gripped his staff weapon and stared at the space where the men had stood. "I do not trust these people."

"Neither do I." Sam looked around. "I have rope in my pack, but it's not long enough. It would still be a long way down."

Teal'c looked at her. Sam said, "I think our best option now is to come back tomorrow. With SG-3, in case the lord doesn't keep his word."

Teal'c nodded slightly. "I agree."

As Teal'c dialed home, Sam took a deep breath and hoped General Hammond would agree, too. Even with SG-3 backing them up, it wasn't going to be easy if things got messy. She didn't like the look of those light weapons, and who knew what they were capable of?

She restlessly drummed her fingers on her P-90 as the gate came to rest and the wormhole whooshed out.

\-----

Daniel woke up on the floor, surrounded by barrels. He was alone, except for a pile of fruit rinds. He lightly kicked it away, into a gap between two barrels, and sat up. He stretched and worked the kinks out of his neck and back.

Jack slid between the barrels, wiping his hands on his pants.

"Where have you been?" Daniel asked.

"Emptying a couple of barrels." Jack sat down next to him, rested his arms on his knees, and twiddled his fingers.

"Why?"

"We might need them to get out of here."

Daniel glanced at him. "That's your plan? We sneak out in barrels?"

"Not necessarily," Jack said, leaning back against a barrel and clasping his hands over his stomach. Daniel watched him. Jack drummed his fingers. "Okay, it's my fall-back plan. Option A is to knock a couple of the guards out, steal their clothes, and sneak out among them. Dressed as locals, we might be able to make it all the way to the stargate."

Daniel scratched his jaw. "Um, if Option A fails, I don't think we're going to get a chance to fall back on Option B."

"Daniel."

Jack gave him a serious, steady look. Daniel leaned back next to him. "Okay. Let's say Option A works. How are we going to find the gate? And how do we even get to it? We never saw how those men got up there."

"I'm hoping there might be some, I don't know, signs or something."

"'This way to the stargate?'" Daniel said, amused.

"'Escaping humans use this door,'" Jack said, closing his eyes.

"'Express lane to Earth.'"

"'Stargate, next left.'"

Daniel watched him for a while, then slid his arm behind Jack. Jack moved cooperatively and settled against him, curled up. Daniel rubbed his shoulders and back, felt Jack relax, felt Jack sleep. He stared at the greenish gloom and the barrels, and remembered a pool of warm water and a fat blue lizard climbing over Jack's naked body.

His thoughts drifted and spiralled off on tangents, and he was in a waking doze when something changed. The hum of the ship around them had changed pitch.

Jack sat up, immediately awake. So awake Daniel doubted that he'd ever really been asleep. "We're landing," Jack said. They sat perfectly still and listened to the ship's hum change again, taper off, and stop. They stood up, and Daniel felt a different weight, a different pull on him. A different gravity, and the solidity of motionlessness.

Jack peered out between the barrels, gestured for him to follow, and slipped out. They found a good place to stand and watch the door, hiding behind a stack of barrels. There was another sound, quiet and mechanical. Daniel stepped back, glanced between columns, and saw the outer hatch opening. He tapped Jack's shoulder and nodded in that direction. Jack watched the interior door, Daniel watched the hatch.

It felt like it was taking forever. Daniel clenched and unclenched his fists, dreading and longing for someone to show up so they could get on with it.

The interior door opened. A woman walked in, holding a small clear cube, and touching its surface. Daniel checked the hatch. A man climbed up the ramp and greeted her. They talked for a while, the woman touching the cube as if entering data. And the thought occurred to Daniel that if one of the guards they were supposed to knock out was a woman, the sneaking out in her clothes part was going to be tough, since she looked about the size of Doctor Fraiser, maybe a little taller.

The woman left via the hatch. That left the man. Putting on gloves, he started wandering among the barrels, eyes scanning them. Maybe doing a visual count or checking for damage. As he came near their hiding place, Daniel's heart raced. The man was coming around, into their row. Jack stood ready. Daniel braced himself and stepped out from the barrels.

"Hello," he said, smiling.

The man stopped, dumbfounded. Daniel nodded toward Jack. The man frowned and turned. Jack punched him, hard, sent him into the barrels. Before the man could get his wind and stand up, Jack was on him, grabbing his shoulders and pulling him forward, only to slam him back against a barrel. The man's eyes closed and a thin trickle of blood ran from his nose.

Jack stood up. "Well. That worked."

They lifted the man and carried him to the back of the cargo hold, where Jack had emptied two barrels.

Daniel started unfastening the guy's clothes: a long jacket, a belt, gloves, ankle boots, and pants. Everything matched. Black, shiny. Looked sort of like leather. Jack crouched down and helped Daniel pull the guy's pants off. Huh. Even the underwear matched.

Daniel held the guy's back up from the floor and Jack took his jacket off. They could leave the guy's shirt. Button the jacket up and no one would know the difference.

They hoisted him up and stuffed him into one of the empty barrels. Jack poured some of the green ore in after him and closed it up. Daniel held the guy's pants up to his waist.

"I don't think I'll fit," he whispered. Jack stood back, gauging sizes. The pants were too short for either of them, but they would just have to deal with that. They could wear their own boots and hope no one looked too closely.

"You lost weight," Jack said, picking up the jacket. "But, uh, yeah. I'll take the pants."

Daniel tried on the jacket while Jack stripped down to his underwear and slid the pants on. The front fastened with something that was like velcro, only it was smooth on both strips. The pants fit, more or less. Too short -- ended just above his ankles -- and the crotch was tight. Jack shifted and rearranged and tried to get comfortable. He looked up and Daniel was staring at him.

"What?" Jack said.

Daniel lifted his eyebrows. "Oh, nothing."

Jack frowned a little and looked him over. The jacket fit Daniel okay, except the sleeves were too short. Daniel put on the gloves. Jack paced around, trying to get used to the pants.

"Nevlin?" a man's voice called from beyond the barrels. "Where are you? Nevlin!"

Jack looked at Daniel and nodded. Daniel stood flat against a stack of barrels and called back, "Over here."

"Nevlin?" The man sounded wary.

Jack stood ready, facing Daniel and watching between the barrels. He saw a black figure, nodded, and Daniel rushed the guy, tackling him into some barrels. The guy gripped Daniel and tried to throw him off. Daniel kneed him in the gut.

Jack knelt beside them -- not easy in those damn pants -- grabbed the guy's head, and crashed it down against the floor. The guy stopped struggling and went limp.

After they'd dumped Second Guy in the other barrel, Jack slid on his jacket. Sleeves too short on this one, too. But it was loose in the shoulders, so he could tug the sleeves down to meet the gloves. He bent down to put on his boots, and when he looked up, Daniel was pulling hard on the guy's pants, straining to get them over his thighs. He grunted and yanked, and the black leathery material covered his thighs and underpants, fitting over his ass. Daniel reached for the fastenings, winced, and squirmed. Fastened up, he exhaled a deep breath.

Jack stared at him, standing up. Daniel pointedly looked him over. Jack glanced down at himself, pulled the jacket closed and buttoned it up.

"If it weren't for these jackets," he said, "we'd look like..."

"Yes," Daniel said, putting on his boots.

They went to the hatch and peered out. The ship had landed outside, on a vast paved strip. There were buildings in the distance. Some men in black uniforms stood next to the ship, a few hundred yards away, talking. Beyond them was a stack of barrels.

Jack and Daniel lifted one of the barrels by the handles set into its sides and hauled it down the ramp. They kept their heads down as they passed the guards talking. The guards paid no attention to them. They set the barrel down with the others, and walked around the stack, as if checking for something. Jack spotted a high building on the other side of the ship, close. He nodded towards it. He and Daniel walked purposefully toward it, and again, the guards ignored them.

Inside, it looked vaguely familiar. It was all white, bland-looking office spaces. People were working or walking around, dressed in black or grey or brown. The hair on the back of Jack's neck prickled, and he was sure he'd been here before. Maybe the woman who sent them to prison was here.

They walked down an aisle between offices, and no one stopped them. Jack noticed one person looking at them curiously, but kept going. At the end of the aisle was an alcove with bright light coming from it. He saw somebody enter, the light flashed, and the person was gone. He glanced at Daniel, who glanced back, and they quickened their pace, making for the alcove.

They were a couple of yards from it when the alarm sounded. A horrible, metallic screeching that they'd heard before. People started shouting and rushing out from their offices, crowding the aisle. Someone grabbed Jack's arm and asked, "What's going on?" Jack shook him off, saw the man stare into his face and frown. He kept walking, Daniel right beside him, and they were there, in the alcove. The man who had grabbed Jack yelled and pointed at them.

A bright light flashed. Jack squinted. It faded, and he and Daniel were standing outside, between two tallish buildings, facing a smaller one. No alarms here. People walked past them, ignored them.

Daniel patted Jack's arm and pointed. Jack looked ahead and saw a massive, black, windowless building rising up from the city around it. They started walking toward it. A reflection of flashing light struck the building on their right. Without looking back, they turned the corner and hurried ahead.

The streets were a maze of anonymous, square metal buildings around paved pedestrian zones, but luckily their destination was a huge landmark impossible to lose sight of. There were enough people on the streets that they seemed to be blending in, but every once in a while, Jack noticed someone staring at them. They weren't blending in enough.

He wasn't surprised when he heard another alarm, this one fainter, behind them. They walked faster. Running would only single them out, make them the obvious targets. He wished he had a weapon. His P-90, his sidearm, one of those light rod things, anything.

He looked up again to check their progress, and didn't see the black building. They were in a narrow street surrounded by gleaming buildings, and Daniel was ahead of him. He caught up and whispered, "Where is it?"

Daniel cocked his head and crossed the street. They walked down an even narrower street. A dead end.

Jack looked up. No. Not a dead end. There it was. Rising up ahead.

There was an alarm going off around it when they stepped into the street right in front of it. "Damn," Jack said.

They walked around the sides, looking for a way in. People were standing in the street, looking up at the top, talking. Jack heard one say, "Strangers at the gate." Another said in reply, "I heard they took the lord." Which made him curious, but he had something more important to think about right now.

More people came out into the street. They were in a crowd. No one else around them wore black, so Jack could see Daniel moving ahead. The crowd shifted and blocked his vision. Parted a little, and no Daniel. Jack slowed down, pushing past people, staring after the spot where Daniel had been.

Someone grabbed his forearm. He stopped and jerked his arm back, and it was Daniel. Daniel tilted his head, and Jack followed him. There was a gap in the crowd, an open space. Daniel walked into it and stopped. Jack looked at him and raised his eyebrows.

"'This way to the stargate,'" Daniel murmured, and pointed at the ground.

Jack glanced down and saw, inscribed on the pavement, a circle with nine marks around it, unmistakably a stargate. "Cool," he said, but the word was swallowed by the bright light that flashed around them.

When the light faded, and they were standing in the stargate room, Jack had a split second to wonder why, if the alarm was sounding, they hadn't disabled the transportation system. Then the answer appeared, literally, as six grey-uniformed guards wielding light rods showed up right behind them. Daniel ran for the DHD, and Jack dived for the floor. The men ran past them.

That's when he heard the sound of P-90 fire. _Strangers at the gate_.

He rested a hand on Daniel's shoulder. "Dial it up," he said. Daniel was already dialing. Jack kept low and quickly crept to the doorway.

Out on the ledge, facing the room, there was Carter, kneeling behind a fallen grey guard and firing her P-90. Next to her was Major Griff, also firing, and Teal'c, holding a squirming man in blue in one arm, balancing his staff weapon in the other. Grey guards stood between Jack and his people. Their backs were to him. There were four, no, five. Three more were sprawled on the floor. A little beyond them, someone from SGC, down. Crouching behind his teammate, a member of SG-3 fired a zat at the grey guards.

"Major!" Jack called.

Carter and Griff looked up, saw him, nodded. Griff came first, keeping low, firing at the guards, who broke formation to cover all directions. He stopped near the doorway. A guard went down. Carter ran behind him, tossing Jack her zat.

The wormhole wooshed out in the room behind them. Jack zatted at one of the guards, who ran out of his line of fire, while Carter ducked around the wall and tapped on her GDO. Teal'c dropped the man in blue, tossing him forward, and ran toward the doorway while Griff blasted covering fire.

"Sir!" Carter shouted. "Our man's not dead."

Jack glanced at the fallen member of SG-3. Saw his chest move. Caught the look of the fourth member of SG-3 and nodded. Carter peered around the doorway, firing. Teal'c and Griff took position at the other end of doorway. Through the haze of bullets and staff blasts and flashes of light, Jack made it to the body, helped the kid from SG-3 lift it by the arms, and dragged it away.

Light flashed just behind Jack. He stumbled, and when he stood up, Daniel had taken the body from him and was helping the kid get him to the gate. They went through.

"Go!" Jack shouted. Another guard was down. Griff and Carter pulled back with Jack. Teal'c fired again and joined them. Just as Jack and Griff were at the gate, another blinding flash of light.

Then he was rolling and crashing and hitting the ramp. Something heavy rolled and crashed next to him. Something else landed on his legs. He heard the iris close and opened his eyes. Medics crowded around him, working everywhere at once.

Jack sat up. Carter was on his legs, a dead weight. "I think she got blasted," he said to the medic closest to him. Another medic lifted her from his legs, and they hunched over her. Jack stood up and saw Teal'c, Griff, and Daniel all standing. The kid from SG-3 was walking with two medics carrying a stretcher. The other member of SG-3 lay on it. Jack watched it go, saw the guy's chest rise and fall. Jack breathed out.

General Hammond stood at the foot of the ramp. His eyes met Jack's, and his grave look softened to one of relief. Major Griff stepped forward.

"Mission successful, sir," Griff reported. Glanced back at Jack and smiled a little before striding off the ramp.

The ramp clanked behind Jack. He looked back and saw Carter rising to her feet, helped by the medics.

"Carter? You okay?"

Carter nodded and grimaced. "A little headache, sir."

Killer headache more like. "It'll pass," Jack said.

"Eventually," Daniel amended.

Carter managed a shaky smile. "That's good to know."

They walked down the ramp and stood before Hammond. "Good to have you back, SG-1," the general said. "All of you."

"Good to be back, General," Jack said. He caught the general's look, and the happy relief of being home faded a little.

"Get cleaned up. Debriefing in one hour," Hammond said. Debriefing and more orders, Hammond's look said. Jack watched him go. More orders already meant something big, something important. _Out of the frying pan..._

As they headed for the showers, he heard Teal'c behind him. "Daniel Jackson. Did you translate the entire wall before this mission?"

"Yes," Daniel replied.

There was a long pause. Then Daniel said, "Well, basically, yes." The direction of his voice changed, toward Jack. "I ran out of time..." His voice changed direction again, back to Teal'c. "...before I could complete it all. But I had all the keywords translated, and scanned through all the inscriptions before we left."

"I see," said Teal'c.

Another long pause. Daniel said doggedly, "Where I left off were rules about how to bring grain and cloth to the lord. It was getting progressively more detailed..." He trailed off and there was another, longer pause.

"Oh," Daniel said finally.

Jack didn't have the energy to cartoon-murder him in his mind. He was already thinking ahead, to a shower and shave. And wondering what their next mission would be.

\-----

Daniel woke up, lost and cold. He blinked a few times, wished for his glasses, then remembered: he was home. He had glasses again. He reached for them, slid them on, and sat up. He was on his unmade bed, in clothes rumpled from being slept in. He glanced at the clock. He'd slept for almost eleven hours. They had thirteen hours of leave left.

For a minute, he considered staying home. Then the minute passed, and he got up and left. As he walked to his car, he wondered if he had ever needed anything, anyone, so much before. So much that there was absolutely no question in his mind about it. He couldn't remember ever having this same compulsion, not exactly.

He reached Jack's house just after noon. Twelve hours left. It took Jack a long time to answer the door, and when he did, he was wearing his undershorts and an old t-shirt and had obviously just woken up.

"I brought pizza," Daniel said, holding up the box.

Jack lifted the lid. "As long as it's not lizard," he said.

Daniel started to take it into the dining room, but Jack held his elbow and steered him down the hallway. "We'll eat it in here. Saves time."

So they sat on Jack's bed and ate pizza, and Jack had the TV on to some movie channel, volume muted. Daniel watched the screen while he ate, and it was a war movie. Black and white. 1940s or 1950s, he couldn't tell.

"Good movie?" he asked.

"I don't know. I was asleep when it started."

Daniel picked at a piece of crust. "I wish we had longer."

"Yeah." Jack was silent for a moment. "Why can't they just call North American Van Lines or something?"

Daniel smiled a little. "I guess they don't go to Vorash. Besides, can you imagine the insurance on a stargate?"

Jack glanced at him and smiled. Daniel scattered crumbs into the pizza box. "At least I'll get to see this ship you guys took. Finally."

Jack shrugged. "Seen one, seen 'em all."

"That's not what you said before, when you came back from Juna." Daniel gazed at Jack and enjoyed how rumpled and sleepy and sexy he looked, sprawled out in his underwear.

"Well..." Jack twitched an eyebrow. "It is pretty big and honkin' and spectacular."

"Uh huh."

They left the empty pizza box on the floor. Daniel washed the grease off his hands in the bathroom and stripped. Came back and joined Jack on the bed, on top of the wrinkled comforter. Soft, cloudy afternoon light lit the room and cast a reflection on the TV screen, obscuring the movie. Jack sat up and pulled off his t-shirt and undershorts and stretched out next to Daniel.

He propped up on one elbow, and Daniel smiled at him. A private, odd little smile.

"What?" he asked.

Daniel brushed the back of his hand across Jack's chest. "I was thinking about you in those pants."

Jack lifted one eyebrow. "I looked ridiculous."

"Yes." Daniel rubbed one of Jack's nipples with a fingertip. "But you filled them out nicely."

Jack stroked Daniel's stomach. "So did you." He remembered the curve of Daniel's ass stuffed into black leather. His hand slid over and under Daniel's hip and squeezed his ass.

Daniel smiled and wrapped his arms around Jack's neck and kissed him, slow and hungry. Jack lifted from the kiss and murmured, "But you looked ridiculous, too," and Daniel gave a soft half-laugh and kissed him again.

Kissing, making out, tangling together. Jack couldn't believe that initially he'd planned to spend his twenty-four hours sleeping. This was better than sleeping. So, so much better. Daniel was warm, and wanting, and restless. Ah, he loved when Daniel was like this. Couldn't believe there was a time when he didn't understand this, didn't know this, didn't want this. Daniel's restlessness seeped through his skin, into his blood, with every stroke and kiss and writhing push.

Jack couldn't stay still, couldn't stop touching him. Hair and neck, shoulders and back, sides and hips, thighs and ass. Couldn't stop kissing him, and pressing against him, and being held and hugged and squeezed and stroked and kissed by him.

Daniel rolled him onto his back, and Jack stretched and rocked beneath him, sliding his hands over Daniel's back. Daniel rested on one forearm and touched a fingertip to Jack's lips. Jack kissed his finger and gazed up at him.

Daniel stared at a point below Jack's face, maybe at his neck. Jack couldn't see his eyes, just the lowered lids and dark lines of his eyelashes. "I want you," Daniel whispered, and, christ, as he said it, his cock twitched against Jack's. "Um. A lot."

Jack took a breath, exhaled. "Yeah." Waited, and Daniel looked at him then, into his eyes. Intense and maybe a little scared (didn't blame him) and very, very horny. Jack cupped the back of his neck and pulled him into a kiss. Delicious Daniel flavor, and for a moment he felt like they were in a warm pool under a hot sun, surrounded by lizards.

When Daniel lifted from the kiss, he stretched across the bed and went hunting in Jack's bedside table. Jack took another deep breath and watched him. A deep ache coursed under his skin, through his bones, and settled, pounding, in his cock and balls. He flattened his palms on the bed and spread his fingers wide. Waited, and Daniel slid back, straddling him, opening the tube. He lifted one of Jack's hands and drizzled wetness over his fingers. Jack shivered. No, that wasn't him, that was Daniel. Jack shivered.

Daniel slid forward, over him, and kept one leg hooked over Jack's. Jack squeezed his ass with one hand, and with the other touched him, rubbed and stroked, and slid two fingers inside him. Daniel arched and rocked, and his dick throbbed against Jack's thigh. Jack kissed his shoulder. Daniel tilted his head, and Jack kissed his neck. Caressed it with his lips and found the good spot, kissed it slow and savoring, and kept circling his fingers inside. Aching everywhere. A good ache.

Daniel was restless and hot. Kept writhing, shivering, pressing back, rubbing his dick against Jack's thigh. He'd dropped the tube somewhere on the bed, and Jack let go of his ass to feel around for it. Found it, and poured more where his fingers were circling and rubbing. Daniel grabbed Jack's neck and kissed him hard. Biting. Devouring.

If it didn't happen soon, it wasn't going to happen, because Jack was going to pop. If Daniel kissed him like that again, he was definitely going to pop. He slid his fingers out, and Daniel rolled off him, onto his back. Daniel squirmed and grabbed the pillows and shoved them under his hips. He stretched and reached his arms back, over his head, and bent his hands back so his palms were flat against the headboard. There was nothing for him to hold onto, but christ, he looked sexy like that.

Jack knelt in front of him and reached to spread the slick wetness over his dick, and as he did, Daniel bent his legs back and spread them, and oh god oh god oh god. Jack shut his eyes and bit the inside of his lip. Oh god. This was going to happen. It was going to happen right now. The ache inside pounded, like it was beating on his skin, trying to get out.

Jack opened his eyes. Daniel had closed his and was breathing hard. And he looked... Well, he looked fuckable. No other word for it. Jack took a deep breath and let it out. Yeah, he looked fuckable, but still. Slow and careful now. Slow and careful.

He almost exploded when his dick touched Daniel's ass, nudged just inside. Almost. What saved him was the thought of how stupid it would be to get this far and lose it all, like some fifteen-year-old kid who couldn't control himself. That, and the fact that Daniel would kill him.

So he held Daniel's hips, caressing, and pushed. Slow and careful, slow and careful. Daniel swallowed hard, kept his eyes shut. Jack pushed again, slow, careful, a little harder. Didn't wait, pushed again, oh christ, there.

Oh god oh fuck oh... The ache burned inside him. Daniel. Hot. Daniel. Tight. Daniel.

Daniel had his eyes squeezed shut, and his lips were parted, and he was breathing out through his teeth. His hands clenched and unclenched next to the headboard. He rubbed his palms against the wood. Slow and careful, Jack pushed further. Aching. Further. More. Daniel. There.

He stopped and stroked Daniel's thighs. Gently. Carefully. Watching him. Daniel's eyes were squeezed shut. Daniel winced.

"Is that it?" Daniel whispered.

Jack lifted his eyebrows and stared at him. "Uh, what?"

"No..." Daniel gave a choking little half-laugh. "I didn't mean... God, no. Um." He licked his lips. "Is there, uh, more?" His fingers curved against the headboard, as if he were clawing at it.

Oh.

"No, that's, uh, it."

And saying it, the sensation slammed through him: every inch of him inside Daniel. Held so tightly. All that heat. Oh god.

Daniel opened his eyes, blinking. He licked his lips again. "Okay," he said, voice breathy. He looked at Jack, then looked down. "Oh god," he said, and tilted his head back and looked at the ceiling.

Jack caressed Daniel's thighs very softly. "Are you all right?" But as he said it, he saw Daniel's cock jerk and bob over his belly. Okay. That had to be a yes.

Daniel looked at him. Didn't need to say it. Jack looked back. Daniel stretched out in front of him, all gleaming skin and muscled curves, watching him, wanting him. Holding him. Heat and strength. Smooth and so, so tight. Hard. Wanting him.

Jack pulled back and thrust. Slow. Careful. Daniel breathed deeply and watched him. Jack drew back again, thrust again. And again. Slowly. Carefully. Finding a rhythm. Found it. Found it when Daniel shut his eyes and moaned. Found it when Daniel's fingers grasped at the headboard and curled into his palms. Found it when Daniel arched his head back and rubbed against the mattress.

Oh, it was too good. Too, too good. Moving inside Daniel, inside that heat, that strength, filling him. So, so tight. Wanting him so, so much. Jack kept the rhythm steady, not so slow, just as careful. And, oh god, Daniel writhed. Squirmed around him and hooked one foot on Jack's back to hold him. Too good, too much. Oh, Daniel.

They moved together, Jack thrusting, Daniel writhing. Breathing. Gasping. Moaning low. So good, too good. Burning, pounding heat. So tight, so strong. Restless.

Jack reached for Daniel's cock, held it and stroked it, once, twice, before Daniel arched and pushed against him and thrust up into his hand. And came. Oh god. Daniel was coming, and he was inside Daniel, all that heat and strength holding him, and Daniel was coming. Thick and hot and slow. And the sound he made... and the way he moved... and the way he dug his heel into the small of Jack's back... and the feel of his pulse in Jack's hand...

Jack thrust, not slow, trying to be careful, trying... thrusting... oh god... The ache melted in a rush, and he was going, thrusting, going. Going deep, there. Coming. The rush swept through him, poured out.

And... there they were. Restlessness gone. Aching gone. Breathing heavily, drenched with sweat, sticky with come.

Daniel looked at him, expression unreadable. No, wrong. Expression readable. Oh god. Very, very readable. Jack swallowed and managed a little smile and stroked Daniel's thigh. _Yeah,_ Jack thought. _Me too_.

Slow and careful, he slipped from Daniel and lowered Daniel's legs. He stretched out on his back, and they lay there together, watching the ceiling. After a while, Daniel got up and left the bedroom. Cloudy afternoon light followed him, cast soft shadows around him as he moved.

In the bathroom, in the shower, Daniel stood still and let the water pour over him. Felt each stream and trickle of it. Closed his eyes and felt it like the footsteps of a lizard walking across his skin. Like the flow of water in a warm pool under heavy, wet heat. Then he moved and smiled to himself and felt the deep, hard ache of Jack inside him, fully inside him.

Out of the shower, he dried off with a towel and started to sling it over a towel rack. He stopped and held the towel and stared at it. Jack's towel. He was standing in Jack's house, holding Jack's towel, after using Jack's shower, after Jack had made love to him. After Jack had been _in_ him. He shivered and stared at the towel, clutched it, and felt the stillness and silence all around him. In this room. In Jack's house.

A soft tap at the door. "Daniel?"

Daniel put the towel on the rack and opened the door. Jack was standing there, and his initial look was concern, slight worry. Daniel half-smiled and looked into eyes, and the concern was gone. Daniel expected smug relief, but no, something else... Something different, slightly urgent... Oh.

Daniel stepped out of his way and went back to the bedroom. The TV was still on. They'd forgotten about it completely. He picked up the pizza box and set it on Jack's dresser. He heard the shower go on. He shivered. He pulled back the covers, rearranged the pillows, and slid into Jack's bed. He rolled onto his stomach and rested his head on clasped hands and watched the TV screen. Another war movie, this one in lurid color. 1950s.

Jack came back and climbed into bed next to him. He stroked Daniel's back and kissed between his shoulder blades. Daniel turned his head to face him, and Jack kissed him very softly.

"You okay?" Jack asked.

"A little sore," Daniel said.

Jack nodded a little and ran his fingers down Daniel's arm, to his elbow. Daniel unclasped his hands and caressed Jack's side. Jack eased onto his back and rubbed Daniel's neck.

Daniel slid one leg between Jack's and stroked his chest, running his fingers through Jack's chest hair. The memory of it, Jack inside him, again. He shivered. Jack felt it and his hand stopped on Daniel's neck.

"I feel a little giddy," Daniel said. Another shiver.

Jack wrapped his arms around Daniel and held him, and Daniel relaxed against him. Shivered again, not so hard this time. Jack's fingers swirled across his back, circling slowly.

"It was... um..." Jack paused. "Um..."

Daniel kissed Jack's shoulder. "Yes, it was." He patted Jack's stomach and looked up, and there was the smug relief. _Absolutely adorable,_ and Jack would kill him if he knew he was thinking that, but too bad, that's what it was. Daniel kissed him, slowly, thoroughly, for ages and ages, until Jack kissed him back, just as slow and thorough, and maybe if they kissed long enough, they could do it again. Well, okay, maybe not. But maybe... They had a few hours left...

"Daniel," Jack said, stroking his back in slow circles. Daniel kissed his neck and curled up, resting his head on Jack's shoulder.

"It was just a thought," Daniel murmured. He reached down and dragged the comforter up and over them.

Jack softly patted his ass. "When we get back."

Daniel slid his fingers through Jack's chest hair and closed his eyes. "Mm. When we get back." In his mind's eye, he saw lizards blinking next to red fruit.

Jack yawned. His fingers kept moving. Slow circles across Daniel's back. Slow, slower, slower.

Daniel was asleep before they stopped moving.

(the end)


End file.
